Everything I never expected
by weloverasslin21
Summary: Sometimes the best things that happen to you can be the most unexpected. Dolph x AJ fic.
1. Chapter 1

Dolph's pov.

I have legitimately no idea what happened out there. She just.. _appeared_. I got up, planned to kick the golden boy's head off with my superkick and saw that she had pushed him off the freaking ladder. I haven't been left this confused since.. well ever. I tried to find her after the match but she was nowhere to be seen. No-one had even seen her leave the arena. It was as if she had just disappeared.

Despite what people may think, I do actually like the small woman. Ever since I first saw her in NXT, she practically glowed with her vibrant personality, she oozed potential and of course she is a very attractive lady. I know I called her some hurtful names such as trash and loser to name only a few, but I really just did that to get at Cena and to make Vickie proud. It's funny, the segment where I ripped into her was only a few weeks ago, and look where we are now. She's off somewhere doing god knows what and I'm stuck here in a small old locker room currently staring at my prized possession, the money in the bank briefcase. Of course I'm also thinking about the self-proclaimed geek goddess and her actions tonight.

It just won't sink in that AJ Lee, John Cena's crazy girlfriend would help me. _Why would she do that? _I need to know. I have to go find Zack because we're riding together tonight but first I think I'll contact AJ. Thank god I got her number a few years ago when we were actually friends. I need an explanation for all of this insanity. Should I call her or text her? Should I go track down which hotel she's staying at? I'm not entirely sure I'm ready to have a face to face talk with her yet, so a text should suffice, right? Here goes nothing.

_'Hey, where did you disappear to? I came looking for you after the match. I think we need to talk. –Dolph'_

I'm sure she'll reply to me soon. Whenever I see her in the hallways she's usually on her phone so tonight should be no different. Now all I've gotta do is wait and see what she has to say.

After about 10 minutes of trying to find Zack, I cannot find anyone I know. What the hell is it with these people and leaving me? It's as if I'm in a horror movie. I'm pretty sure zombies will appear at any minute to savage me. Oh finally, a familiar face.

"Hey Wade, have you seen Zack anywhere? I'm supposed to be catching a ride with him to the hotel and can't seem to find him anywhere."

"I think I saw him leave about 20 minutes ago with Cena. Sorry mate."

Perfect. Just absolutely mother freaking perfect. He ditches me for Mr. 'You can't see me' of all people. Well screw him. "Oh okay. Thanks man. See you tomorrow." Looks like I'm gonna have to get a cab to the hotel. And that idiot knows exactly how much I hate cabs.

Brilliant. To add to my list of problems, it is now starting to rain outside. I wonder what AJ is doing. I bet she's sat in bed all snug and warm feeling pretty proud of what she did tonight. Speaking of little miss crazy, has she bothered to text me back? Nope. No text message from her. That's surprising. Maybe she's avoiding me. Wait, what kind of woman helps you win a match and then doesn't even have the decency to reply to your text message and explain herself? _She is crazy I guess. _

No, that's not good enough for me. I'm going to be the one going crazy if I don't have any sort of clue as to what happened tonight. I think a phone call is in order.

_"The number you have called is currently unavailable, please try again."_ Oh so that's how it is AJ? Dodging my calls as well as my text messages. The phone barely rang twice so I know you clicked 'decline'. Well sweetheart you're not going to get let off that easy.

After the 6th attempt I am close to giving up. I suppose she just doesn't want to talk, she has had a busy night after all. Oh wait, there's finally a voice on the line that isn't that annoying voice message woman. "Dolph, what do you want?" _What do I want?!_ Is she for real?! I want to know why the hell you felt the need to get involved in the main event and screw over the man you supposedly love for a man you supposedly hate! _That's _what I want!

"Are you kidding me right now? We need to talk about what happened out there tonight AJ because for the life of me I don't understand why you did what you did."

"It's hard to explain.. I'll tell you everything just not right now."

"Woah, hold on. You just interfered in my match, I think it's only fair you give me an explanation **now**. I'm going to lose my mind if I don't know why."

"Can't you just accept the fact that I helped you and leave me alone?" This lunatic really knows how to push my buttons.

"Helped me?! I didn't need your help! I would have done fine without it!"

"Okay then, for future reference I'll know never to save your pathetic ass when you're losing." _Pathetic. Losing. Really?_ If I wasn't mad at her for getting involved in the first place, I definitely am mad at her now.

"You're the most frustrating woman on the entire planet! God!" Deep breaths Dolph, she's never going to explain herself if you're mean to her. Try a different approach."Look, I'm just really confused right now AJ. You could have gotten seriously hurt out there."

"I know, I just.. I just" Wait, is she crying? Oh god she _is_ crying. I can just about hear the sniffles on the other end of the line. Damn, the one thing I cannot handle is a crying woman. "You'll get your explanation, I promise. I just don't want to talk to anyone right now, okay?"

"Oh man, AJ I'm sorry I.." She hung up on me. Well that was kinda rude. I don't know how to feel about this entire situation. For god's sake Dolph, you should be celebrating over the fact that you have a win over John Cena for crying out loud. You should be out picking up chicks and having a good time, not harassing a poor girl and making her cry. That's low, even for you. You've really outdone yourself this time.

In the darkness I can finally see some headlights. It's about time that a cab turned up. As I'm heading back to the hotel I can't help but try to conceive some kind of reasoning for all this madness. There's going to be no sleep for the show-off tonight. Not when I have a tiny 95 pound deranged diva that won't seem to escape my thoughts. Just what is it about her that gets me so worked up?


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello there readers:) I meant to put a little message on the beginning of the last chapter but forgot to so here it is. This is my first fic and of course it's about the latest amazing power couple Dolph and AJ. I felt the need to write this story just because there isn't enough fics about them in my opinion:P. Just a quick note to mention that I will be switching points of view every few chapters. So I hope you like the fic and feel free to review if you like!**

Dolph's pov

3 hours sleep I got last night. It's actually more than I expected to get. Forever suffering with insomnia. I suppose that's the price I pay for being one of the greatest superstars in WWE right? Admittedly, sleeping was a little bit easier to do before the whole AJ scandal started. It isn't just about her either, it's about everything. I can't help but stay awake at night coming up with ways that I can wipe the smug grin off Cena or thinking of what I could do to get Vickie to shut her trap about coming up with 'evidence' for this whole charade. A part of me wishes that I could just block the world out and get a well-deserved break from all the drama.

Ha, who am I kidding? I _love_ the drama. It's part of what attracted me to the business in the first place. And here I am. Standing in the hallway watching all the superstars go about their business as the show started not that long ago. Tonight is the slammy awards and I was actually hoping to catch up with AJ when I arrived here but again, she's just nowhere to be seen. What if she doesn't turn up tonight? It wouldn't surprise me if I'm completely honest. She's probably way too scared to show her face after costing the franchise a title shot. Her and John are also tipped to win that stupid kiss of the year award. That sickens me. Did anyone actually see that kiss? I know Cena can't wrestle a great match to save his life but he can't even kiss properly either! Standing backstage watching him and AJ was so uncomfortable, that's why I had to run out and stop it. Yeah, that's why. It was totally nothing to do with the fact that I just feel weird _whenever_ I see AJ kiss someone.

The sound of familiar voices causes me to turn around. In my eyesight I can see Kaitlyn and Johnny Curtis chattering away. Ah Kaitlyn, you are just the woman I wanted to see. I really don't care if you're in the middle of a conversation; I want to find out where the hell Miss Lee is from her best friend.

"Hey Kait, can we talk for a minute?" She looks puzzled. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that we haven't really spoke since our whole love triangle deal a few years ago. It's her fault that whole thing ended badly for getting so attached when it was only supposed to be a storyline. Oh well, I moved on from that fiasco, so should she.

"Um, sure Dolph. I'll see you later Johnny." The 'let's get weird' now turned 'Fandango' wrestler scuttled away so me and the two toned haired lady could have a chat.

"Look, I know we don't talk that much anymore Kait, but I was just wondering if you knew where AJ was? I really need to talk to her about what happened last night and I think she might be avoiding me."

"Yeah, we **don't** talk that much anymore Dolph, and if we did you would know that me and AJ aren't really that close anymore either." Well I never. I did not expect to hear that. AJ and Kaitlyn were inseparable; I thought the whole friends-falling-out deal was just for TV. I bet that's one of the reasons why AJ has been so emotional lately.

"Really? Kait I should have known, I'm sorry. I know this sounds kinda bad now you've just told me that but if you do see her can you just let me know? I desperately need to talk to her."

"Fine. Although I highly doubt I will see her because she avoids me also.." I tuned out whatever Kaitlyn was saying. Behind her head I can see a television monitor and look who just happens to be skipping on stage to accept an award. AJ Lee. When the hell did she even arrive at the arena?!

"Thanks Kait, I've gotta go. Talk later yeah?" I didn't even wait for a reply from her before I was rushing off to go crash this segment. The closer I get to the stage the more I can hear both AJ and Vickie talk more clearly. "Hey Dolph! Wait up a sec!" Oh how lovely. Here he is ladies and gentleman! Running up behind me it's my so-called best friend, Zack Ryder. Why do I even call him that? We've fallen out more times than I've lost matches.

"Bro wait up, there's some stuff that I need to tell you. Last night I was with John and.."

"Now's not the time Zack! I couldn't care less what you have to say about that idiot! Look AJ's out there. She's been dodging me and I need to speak with her **now**. Just stay away from me okay? Go find your best pal John-boy 'cause I'm sure he'll listen to your crap."

"Woah, why are you being like this? Ever since this stupid AJ scandal started you've been acting so different. I don't want to be around you when you're this worked up bro."

"Yeah? WELL STAY AWAY FROM ME THEN."

I've gotta admit I was pretty harsh on him. Serves him right though for ditching me last night to go with fruity pebbles! Argh, Dolph focus on what you need to do. Quick stop before the curtain to check out what they're saying on the monitor. Did Vickie just call her trash? _Really Vick?_ You're practically just stealing my lines now. Oh well, with a nod to the tech guy it's time for me to sort out the ridiculous bickering between these two.

"No no no no no, this is not happening! This is not happening! No no no!" Was she really trying to get at Vickie whilst I'm stood in the middle of them both? Is she _really _that crazy? I'll give her credit though, she smells so good tonight. I never even realised in the past how utterly amazing she smells. It's like a mix of vanilla and coconut. I like it.

"You know what Vickie? That may have been kiss of the year.." where are you going with this AJ? "But it is nothing compared to this." Erm excuse me.. WHAT? It was just registering in my brain that the crowd are chanting 'Ziggler's better' and now little miss crazy has her legs wrapped around my waist and is staring at me with those big brown eyes. Big _beautiful_ brown eyes may I add.

I look at her with curiosity and suddenly those glossy plump lips of hers are latched onto mine. Time has slowed down. The resident crazy chick is _actually_ kissing me. Not Punk, not Bryan, not Kane and definitely not Cena. Me. And damn it Kane was right, she is a _phenomenal _kisser. My mouth naturally seems to move with hers in a rhythm without me realising. The roar from the crowd and Vickie's annoying voice just seem to fade away. Now I don't want to sound like some totally lame guy but it's as if we're the only two people in the arena. No lights, no audience, no ring but _just us._ As I run my hands up and down her perfectly smooth back I can't help but get lost in the moment_._ My heart is racing at what feels like 140 miles per hour. Wait, **what? **I shouldn't be feeling like this. I shouldn't be kissing her back. I'm supposed to hate her guts! I'm supposed to absolutely loathe her exactly like Vickie wants me to! But I don't. I **like** her. I really like her. Oh my god.

It explains everything. It explains why I got so jealous and annoyed with Cena. It explains why I was so bitter and called her all those names after I found out she had 'fraternised' with him. And it explains why I haven't been able to get her out of my head for weeks, no, months.

I, Dolph Ziggler have feelings for AJ Lee. Wow.

The kiss ended far too quickly for my liking. She glides her hand across my cheek and smiles that infamous 'crazy chick' smile. Can she tell that my hands are shaking? She jumps off me, tilts her head, smiles again and then skips off! For the love of god WHAT?! The confusion I felt yesterday feels like nothing compared to this moment. I need answers. I need reasoning. _I need another kiss. _Shut up brain!

I run to the backstage area in a mad attempt to find her before she miraculously disappears yet again. This time she won't escape. This time she won't avoid me. This time she's going to let me know what is going on inside her mind.


	3. Chapter 3

AJ's pov

I met Dolph just over two years ago. It was when I started NXT and he was one the first superstars on the roster to introduce himself and make me feel welcome. I remember that day so vividly. He was wearing a blue Kent state university t-shirt with a black suit and sneakers. He made a joke about my height and we hit it off instantly. Things were great and surprisingly enough we became really close friends. I'd be a total liar if I said that I wasn't attracted to him, and it's not like I wanted to like him in that way but he had such a charm about him it was hard not to. I never told him that because of Kaitlyn.

Kaitlyn was completely obsessed with Dolph. When she was placed in that weird love triangle with him and Vickie she just got way too attached. She was convinced he felt the same way and actually, I thought he liked her too. When she finally plucked up the courage to tell him how she felt and he rejected her, that's when things went wrong for us.

**Flashback.**

_I stormed into his locker room. How dare he reject Kaitlyn! Time to give this jackass a piece of my mind. "What the hell Dolph? What did you say to make Kait so upset?"_

_"I didn't say anything bad! I was just honest with her that's all"_

_"Honest? What do you mean honest? She's just been crying on my shoulder so you obviously said something mean to her. How could you do that?" The rage I am feeling right now is too much. No-one makes my best friend cry and doesn't get an earful from me._

_"Look, she told me how she felt about me and I told her that I don't feel the same way. I told her that if I gave her the wrong impression that I'm sorry and.. that I.. kinda have feelings for someone else."_

_"You're such a dick! You've been leading her on for months! Ugh, I can't even look at you right now." I know I shouldn't be this hard on him for not feeling the same way about Kait but damn it he's been flirting with her backstage since the beginning of nxt! I turn to walk away but he pulls my arm back._

_"Woah AJ don't walk out on me like that, I never meant to lead her on. I'm seriously not that kind of guy I swear."_

_"Not that kind of guy? Dolph, we've all been really close over the past few months. I've seen how you are with her and to me it seemed as if you liked her. I just can't believe you made her cry. And to tell her you like someone else too? That's such a slap in the face!"_

_He looks down at the floor. He looks almost as hurt as Kait did. "I'm really sorry AJ. I just want us all to be friends."_

_"I don't think I can be friends with someone who's hurt my bestest friend in the whole world like that. See you later Dolph. Don't bother talking to me."_

And that was it. I walked off from him and we barely spoke for two years. Looking back now it hurts to realise that I pushed a guy away who had become a pretty close friend just because he didn't feel the same way about Kaitlyn. _Kaitlyn. _We're not even friends anymore! It's so crazy to see just how much things have changed within a few years. Who would have thought that I would end up actually kissing Dolph? I know I certainly didn't.

It's been twenty minutes since I kissed him. He's probably running around in a frantic attempt to find me and try to understand all this craziness. I should really learn not to mess with guy's heads because it seems to be happening on a regular basis. He'll find out the reasons why soon enough, I just need some time to think through what I'm going to do next. That's why I'm here, hiding behind some stacked up suitcases in the diva's locker room. This is where I usually hide whenever I'm feeling confused or need to be alone with my thoughts.

_So why did you do it AJ? Why did you push John Cena off the ladder?_ Man, where to begin. Let's start off with the fact that John Cena never gave a damn about me. I saw his expression's on Raw last week. He was practically embarrassed being seen with me. How can a man go from wanting to be with me one week to wanting to get rid of me the next? And don't get me started on.. _her._

No-one knows that the night John kissed me he asked me out on a date. We were never like boyfriend and girlfriend or anything but I did develop feelings for him. The hurt that I felt when I walked into the hotel and saw him kissing Nikki Bella was indescribable. Why her? Why would he do that to me? From that moment I knew I had to get some form of revenge. No-one makes AJ Lee look like a fool and get away with it. That's where Dolph comes in.

Dolph is Cena's rival. Nothing says revenge like helping his rival beat him in a main event match. So I did what I did. Not much else to it. _So what about the kiss with Dolph tonight? _It was just brilliant wasn't it? Seriously, I might just buy myself a medal for my genius. I knew Dolph would come out tonight. He just can't help himself. I knew that as soon as he saw me and Vickie arguing for storyline purposes he would come out to stop the fight and try to talk to me because I've been avoiding him. That's where I had to make an impact.

Kissing Dolph was the perfect form of revenge on everyone who's screwed me over. It was a way to get back at Punk, Bryan, Kane and Cena for treating me like I was some mentally deranged freak. It was a way to get back at Nikki because Dolph used to be her boyfriend and she decided to take my.. whatever he was to me. It was a way to get back at Vickie for making my life miserable. It was a way to prove to everyone that I am the diva of the year for a reason and that I am **not **to be messed with.

I should probably get up from this small space. Gotta face the music at some point. I don't think I'm ready to talk to Dolph though. It's just, we haven't had a proper conversation since that night that I told him I didn't want to be his friend. Sure, we've had promo's together in the ring but backstage we've acted like total strangers. It'll be weird to start talking again. _C'mon AJ get your act together. You just kissed the poor man, the least that you can do is stop avoiding him._ I stand up to find a certain blonde superstar leaned against the door, with a rather amused look on his face.

"Nice hiding place AJ. Now are you finally going to give me an insight into this madness?"

Yep. It's time to face the music.

**Quick note: I'm acting as if the photo's of John and Nikki were never leaked onto the internet and no-one really knows about them as a couple. Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

AJ's pov

There's an awkward silence. I want to start speaking but the words seem to be trapped in my throat. It feels as if I haven't seen him in two years. Like we've never spoke since I told him I didn't want to be his friend. He seems happier now in comparison to how he's been as of late. This man before me is like _the man I was attracted to. _"What do you want me to tell you?"

He scoffed. Surprisingly enough he seems to be calm which I wasn't expecting. "Well how about you start with TLC AJ. Why did you get involved in that match and please explain to me why you would push your boyfriend off a ladder?"

"He's not my boyfriend Dolph. Basically, he.. he never cared about me and I wanted to hurt him in the worst possible way. I figured costing him a match at the last pay per view of the year would do the trick."

Dolph looks at me with curiosity. If I'm not mistaken I can actually see a slight smile on his face. "Okay, so you wanted revenge. I get it. So it has nothing to do with wanting to help me?"

"Well, I never thought it was fair that he got the match against you for your briefcase. You earned that Dolph and you're right, Cena gets everything just handed to him."

"Oh, you think it was unfair? That is rich coming from the woman who made me put my briefcase on the line against Jericho."

"Hey! You know I was forced to do that by the board of directors because Chris was leaving to go on tour with Fozzy."

"Fine I'll let you off on that one. Now how about we change the subject slightly and you tell me why you just jumped into my arms and made out with me in front of millions of people?"

Okay AJ, choose your words carefully. "I just wanted to do something unexpected. I wanted to get back at John and at Vickie. Kissing you when I just received an award for kiss of the year with another man seemed sorta perfect. It killed two birds with one stone."

Now that's definitely a smile I can see on his face. Was it because I said kissing him seemed perfect? Ugh, maybe he really is full of himself like his on screen character. "Over the past year I've seen you do some pretty crazy things, but last night and tonight combined were probably your finest moments yet. I have to know the answer to this question the most though, what the hell have you planned to do next?"

That's the question on everybody's lips. _What is little crazy AJ going to do next? _Well I have a little information for the world. **I am not crazy.** I am perfectly in control of my mental state and I do not do things just because I am 'crazy'. Despite this fact however, I have absolutely no clue where I'm going with this. I don't have any idea what I'm going to do now that I've accomplished my mission for revenge.

"Would you believe me if I said I don't have anything planned?"

Now the smile on his face has turned into laughter. "No I don't believe that you haven't got something up your sleeve. The reason for that AJ is I actually know you. Remember how we used to spend every single day together? At least I thought I knew you. What I do know is that you.."

"Dolph, AJ you need to get ready you've got a tag match tonight." Ugh, it's that awful tech guy who just happens to.. wait WHAT? A tag match?

"Woah hold up, what do you mean a tag match? I was told that all I had to do was go out to collect my kiss of the year award and I'm done for the night."

"Well Vickie's just made a tag match with you and Dolph against her and John. Dolph you really need to hurry and get changed because you have to film a segment with her to film."

The self-proclaimed show off looks back and forth between me and the tech guy bewildered. The guy who I think is called Malcolm smiles and leaves the room. How dare he smile after just dropping that bombshell on me. He's the next on my list to screw over.

"I.. uh.. Can we carry on this conversation after the match?"

"Dolph I don't really have much more to say. I know you think I have some ulterior motive but I don't. None of this was about you and I'm sorry that you were involved in it all."

He doesn't even respond to me. He just stares into my eyes and then walks out. Could I have hurt him by saying this wasn't about him? I mean, it was about him a little. I do think he has earned that briefcase and a part of me has _wanted_ to kiss him since the day that he teased me about my height, I can't deny that fact. I couldn't tell him about wanting to kiss him though could I? His ego would have skyrocketed and I'm not sure I could handle that. All I wanted to do was teach Cena a lesson for sneaking around with Nikki behind my back. I mean is it so wrong to give John a taste of his own medicine?

I nervously play with the strands of my hair when I see a familiar figure in the hallway. Is that.. Big E Langston? My god, it is! Someone's actually in the building who doesn't dislike me! "Hey E! Come in here I haven't seen you in so long!"

"AJ! Hey girl, I can't talk long, I've got a meeting with Vince and the creative team. They're trying to come up with an idea on how I'm gonna debut on raw. So far I don't think they have anything for me."

This might be the best news I've heard all day. I've been waiting for the day that E gets called up to the roster. I always envisioned him in a bodyguard type role for when he got called up. He has that huge stature that would be perfect for a bodyguard. Then again I can't really say anything. I thought that I would start this amazing 'power couple' with Daniel. Or maybe Punk. Or John. Yeah, they didn't exactly turn out how I wanted them too.

Wait. A power couple. A bodyguard. Oh AJ Lee, you are a genius!

"E, I'm coming with you to that meeting. I think I have an idea on how you can make your debut. Tonight."

* * *

Mayhem. That's the word that springs to mind when I think of everything that's happened over the past few days. Mayhem.

I personally just debuted Big E Langston the December 17th edition of Monday Night Raw. How cool is that? What's even more cool is how he just layed out John boy so easily. I'm so proud of my long time friend from NXT. If everything goes according to plan and I can manage to get Dolph on board with my brilliant idea, then it looks like E will be working alongside us for a long time coming. I'm a very happy woman right now.

"AJ? WHERE ARE YOU?!"

Didn't take long for my mood to last did it? Dolph stormed through the curtain in quite possibly the most angriest mood I've ever seen him in. Now's probably the time to calm him down and try and sweet talk him into the most genius idea you've ever thought of AJ. "Dolph, I'm.. I'm here."

"YOU.. YOU SAID.." He can't even finish his sentence because he's so angry. Is it just me or is he incredibly sexy when he's like this? "YOU SAID YOU DON'T HAVE AN ULTERIOR MOTIVE. REMEMBER?" Yep, he's definitely sexier when he's angry. I can see a few wrestlers and tech guys poking their noses into our conversation. How embarrasing.

"Hey, stop yelling okay? I know what I said Dolph and honestly I meant it but look I've got some stuff that I need to talk with you about. Now isn't the time or place though."

"Screw the right time or place. You're messing with my head AJ! Who the hell was that guy out there?"

"I'm serious Dolph, I'm not talking about this here. Go get a shower or something and we'll go to the nearest starbucks and talk okay?"

"Give me one good reason why I should?"

"Because I'm certain you're going to like what I have to say." I move closer to his body and place my hand on his cheek. "I know that we aren't as close as we used to be, but right now I need you to trust me. As strange as it sounds I want to help you. Please just hear me out?"

I can tell that his eyes are exploring my facial features for signs of dishonesty. This time I'm not lying to anyone. I do want to help him. I want to help him aswell as myself and E. He grabs my hand and removes it from his cheek. The only strange thing about this is how he held for a few extra seconds before letting go.

"Fine. You win. Meet me at the starbucks in half an hour. I'm intrigued to hear what you have to say Miss Lee."

He turns to go enter his locker room. Maybe for once AJ you'll get what you actually want.

**Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and thanks for the reviews on the story so far. I love reading them :)**


	5. Chapter 5

Dolph's pov

Why am I even bothering to talk to her? If I was really a smart man then I would just forget about her and focus on getting the world heavyweight championship. But no, I'm outside starbucks about to go listen to whatever crap she has to say to me. I peer through the window before entering and she's already sat at a table. She's playing with her hair which means that she's nervous. Why do I have to know so many little things about her?

I grab a vanilla spice latte from the counter and make my way to sit in the booth with AJ. She looks up from twiddling with her brunette locks and smiles at me. I haven't seen that genuine smile of hers in a long time. She's either been sad or had to put on a fake smile for the cameras. _I like seeing her happy for a change._

"Before I tell you my genius idea that I just know you're going to love, I'm certain that there are more questions that you want to ask me. So go ahead. I'll be completely honest with you."

She's being pretty straight to the point. I like it. "Okay. When I called you last night, you started crying. Why?"

I can see that within thirty seconds of saying that she seems happy I've already crushed that mood. "I had just pushed a guy who had recently become a part of my life off a ladder. I was scared that I could potentially lose my job because I wasn't supposed to push him and I was just thinking about every little bad thing that happened to me this past year. It all got to me and I wouldn't stop crying. Can you blame me?"

I'm surprised that she hasn't pulled her hair out with how much she keeps fiddling with it. There's no need to be nervous around me AJ. "No, I guess I can't blame you for getting upset. Next question. Who's the huge dude that you brought out to the ring tonight?"

"His name is Big E Langston. He's a friend of mine from NXT. He's been looking for a way to debut on raw and I suggested that he should take out John. He's a pretty awesome guy, you'll like him."

I'll like him? I don't even want to get to know him! "You didn't even think to tell me that you were going to bring him out? I prefer to not be surprised at all never mind two nights in a row."

She rolls her eyes at my comment. How does she even have the gall? "I knew you probably wouldn't agree with it and besides, when I was pitching the idea to creative, you were unsuccessfully trying to cash in your briefcase so I couldn't talk to you." Well, she does have a point.

"Ugh okay. Tell me about your supposed 'genius' idea and also why you would want to help me."

The genuine smile is back on her face and she's finally stopped messing with her hair. "This is gonna be a lot to take in so brace yourself." Oh my lord, I'm actually scared to hear what she has to say. "I want me and you to be the next biggest power couple in WWE and I want Big E Langston to be our bodyguard."

For the love of pro wrestling is she off her rocker? Not that long ago we couldn't stand to be in the same room as each other and now she wants us to be in a couple? "Oh man, I thought the whole crazy chick persona was just an angle, but you're legit psycho aren't you?"

The change of facial expressions of the woman sitting before me is pretty funny. Happy to insulted and annoyed in 0.5 seconds flat. I love how adorable she looks this way though.

"I'm not crazy. So will you please stop thinking that I am." It's hard to think that way sweetheart when you have that crazy look on your face and you're speaking through gritted teeth. "I know it may sound like a completely mental idea right now.."

"Ha, you think?"

"..But just think about how great it could be. I'm not saying that you need it, but me and E will be there to help you out in matches. If we were a couple it would really piss John and Vickie off and also think of what having an awesome power couple did for guys like Edge and Triple h. Don't you want that kind of legacy?"

In all honesty the idea was interesting. Of course I would love to have a similar career to those guys. They're total legends, but there are so many disadvantages to her scheme, I can't help but laugh.

"AJ, I've just gotten out of some weird on screen relationship with Vickie, what makes you think that I want another one? Also, I've been wanting to go on my own for such a long time now. I need to prove that I'm good enough to make it to the top **without** anybody's help."

"Dolph can't you see that there is no downside to this? Our relationship would work ten times better than yours and Vickie's and why is that? Because we have a strange connection and you can't deny that." Again, she does have a point. There is a connection there. Being in a fake couple doesn't exactly sound great to me though considering that I think I might have feelings for her. "Also, the power couple thing won't last forever. You will go on your own at some point but for right now, this is one of the best ways to make it to the top."

"Please indulge me on how that's true."

"I really don't want to sound cocky because you know I'm not that kind of girl, but I did just win the diva of the year award. Having me on your arm for a while will look good for you plus having E there will make you look more of a threat than what you already are."

"Argh, AJ you have this distinct ability to make it sound so great, you truly do but.."

She places her hand on mine to stop me mid-sentence. "No buts Dolph. I believe that this is the best thing to do for all of us. Look, creative have said that they approve of this. All we need is for you to confirm that you're on board with everything and we're all set to be the next biggest thing."

Those large, _beautiful_, brown orbs of hers. They get me every single time. How the heck am I supposed to turn her down when she looks at me in such a cute way? _Damn you and your adorability AJ. _I inhale deeply knowing what I'm about to say next may be a mistake.

"Fine. Let's do it. Just please don't make me regret this. Also, if I want out of this thing then I can get out of it at any time I want, deal?"

The smile on her face is now a mile wide. At least I can still make her smile. "Deal." Great, now she's all giddy. "You are so not going to regret this Ziggy!"

_Ziggy?_ She hasn't called me that since the day we met. I've kinda missed it.

With a sip of my Latte I notice the time on my IPhone. "It's getting pretty late. Want me to take you back to the hotel? My car's right outside."

"Sure. That sounds perfect."

* * *

It's been good to just talk to AJ again. I know now why I've missed her so much over the past few years. She's so easy-going and funny. In the car on the way over here we had a quick catch-up of everything going on in our lives. It makes me wonder why we didn't just try to bury the hatchet sooner. My guess is because of Kaitlyn. Speaking of her, AJ told me why they're not close anymore. They apparently fell out a few months back after an argument about them both changing so much. Sad really, I thought they had a pretty great bond.

"You know, you didn't have to walk me to my door Dolph. I would have gotten here fine without you."

"I wanted to seem like a gentleman. Anyway, who knows, John could have gotten payback on you and hired a hitman or something." She laughs at me. Her laughter may be one of the sweetest things I've ever heard.

"Good one. Well, it looks like I'll be seeing you tomorrow at smackdown then. We need a run through of what we're going to be doing."

"Ahh okay. I'll uh.. see you tomorrow." I try and plaster a smile onto my face and turn to walk away but she grabs my arm to stop me.

"Hey listen. I know that this is a lot to get your head around, but look on the bright side of it all. We get to be friends again and face new experiences. That's gotta be a good thing right?"

"Sure it is AJ. Erm, about tonight. I've gotta pay you a compliment on your acting. For a moment there I thought that you might have feelings for me." Even though I know that you won't and probably never will. That's usually the way it is with girls I actually give a damn about. They never feel the same.

"Want me to be totally honest? I think I've always had a thing for you. It wasn't all acting out there tonight." Is.. Is she serious? "I never wanted to tell you that because I never felt good enough for you. But this whole couple deal.. It's strictly business." What a way to make me feel good and then shoot me down all in the space of a few seconds. To snap me out of my thoughts she leans up and kisses me on my cheek. "Good night Dolph."

She disappeared into her room. My cheek is tingling. What a night. Looks like it's time to find the will to leave and try and get at least a few hours' sleep. As I turn with a huge smile on my face I find Zack walking towards me, shaking his head. I don't have a good feeling about this.

"Bro, we need to talk."

* * *

**That's the end of that chapter and I hope you enjoyed reading it. Leave a review to let me know what you thought? Now here's to hoping that there will be a lot of AJ and Dolph moments tomorrow on RAW :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Dolph's pov

"Bro we need to talk."

Oh do we Zack? Let's have a freaking talk then just because you want us too. Whenever I want to talk to you you're either with Cena or some other random wrestler who thinks it's cute that you suck up to them.

"No we don't Zack, I've gotta get back to my hotel room, I don't have time for a little chit-chat with you."

"Don't walk away from me when I'm talking to you." Despite his pathetic calls I carry on walking down the hall. "HEY, I'M TALKING TO YOU!"

Ugh, this idiot isn't gonna quite anytime soon. May aswell talk to the guy otherwise I'm definitely not getting any sleep. "Go ahead then Zack, spit it out 'cause I really want to get to my room."

"First off, what the hell is going on with you and AJ the hoeski?" I've already heard enough. I storm up to him, grab his arm with extra force and drag him down the hallway until we're far enough away from her room.

"Are you out of your mind? Her room was right next to you! Don't call her a hoeski either you inconsiderate dick." I'm literally fuming. What's gives him the right to call AJ names like that? He barely even knows her. I have a good mind to kick his teeth down his throat.

"This coming from the dude who called her trash on live TV? I saw the kiss between you two tonight and something's going on. Whatever it is I don't like the look of my best friend with her."

"Best friend? How many times have we fought on screen and off? Zack, we're not really best friends and you know it."

"I'm going to ignore you right now because you need to know this bro."

"I'm sure I don't need to know whatever bs you're about to spew but you know what, go right ahead, be my guest. "

"I know you're mad at me because I left with John last night when I was supposed to be riding with you." You're damn right I'm mad. You better have a point to this Zack. "I only went with him because he had some stuff to tell me. Dolph, do you know that John is dating Nikki? As in Nikki Bella."

I did not expect to hear that. John Cena and my ex-girlfriend. Of all the women in the world that he could have he has to go for Nikki? The woman who just happens to be my longest relationship. The woman who I fell head over heels in love with. The woman who took my heart and stomped all over it. But.. I thought him and AJ were a thing?

"What do you mean? What exactly did he tell you?"

"He was just trying to make sense of what happened last night and he told me that he thinks that the reason why she did it was because of him and Nikki. He also said that Nik thought that she saw her in the same hotel they were staying at."

"This is too much to take in right now." I just want to leave. I don't want to talk to anyone but instead I just want to lay in bed and think things through. This news has just screwed up everything that I was so happy about five minutes ago.

"I know man. John said he was totally confused because he thought AJ was a great girl but.."

"I know she's a great girl. No-one needs to tell me how great of a girl she is because I know better than anyone alright?" I don't know why I suddenly became so snappy to Zack but it's almost like a natural reaction to defend AJ.

"Okay, okay. No need to be like that. Anyway you didn't answer my question. What's going on with you and her?"

Ha. I wish I knew. "Uh, she wants to form this power couple or stable thing. I uh.." My god Dolph why are you stumbling so much? You really need to get your act together. "I don't know if I want to do it anymore now though. What if she's just using me to piss off Nikki and John. What if it ruins my career?"

"Look I don't trust her and I don't think you should either. I mean, it's not like she's never messed with someone's head and used them. Look at that love rectangle thing she was involved in earlier in the year."

Again, I can't help but be defensive. "Oh, just shut up. You know absolutely nothing. I don't care if you don't trust her. She might not even know about John and Nikki. Ever thought of that? I meant what I said about not really being best friends. Just leave me alone Zack, I mean it."

Before he can get a word in, I trudge down the long hallway to find my room. I thought last night was mad but with everything that's happened tonight, I'm not sure I can process it all in my mind. Two days ago things were simple. The only problems that I had to think about was putting on a great match at TLC and trying to come up with a way to break off from Vickie. Now I've got a 5"2 crazy chick who could be using me. Despite everything Zack's said, I can't help but want to go ahead with this power couple deal. So what if she is just using me? It could actually benefit me right? My mind is utterly frazzled. Hopefully I can figure out what I'm going to do by tomorrow.

* * *

So I went through with it. Despite all the doubts in the back of my mind I went ahead with AJ's plan and we just made our mark as the next greatest power couple. I wish things could just be that simple though.

I leave the shower area of the locker room to find all of the other superstars have left and there is only AJ sat next to my briefcase. She looks so stunningly innocent. One quick glance at this woman and you would never even imagine her doing the wacky stuff that she's done over the past year. She looks like she couldn't have a harmful bone in her body.

Her obvious beauty is something that could probably draw any man in and her naturally bubbly personality clearly is another factor. But the main thing about AJ Lee that attracts someone is that she has this ability to make you want to protect her. Take last night for example, I've been in many fights with Zack but as soon as her disrespected AJ, I had never been more livid with him. I think it's been that way since the NXT days though. I never realised it at the time but I always felt compelled to make sure no jerks were hitting on her, or no-one would treat her like crap.

If I'm being completely honest with myself, the reason why I went through with everything tonight on smackdown is because I can't stand the thought of losing her again. It hurt the last time we stopped being friends. When you have a connection with someone and they make your day that much better just by being there, it becomes severely hard once they walk out of your life. I know that if I didn't go through with this whole ordeal, we may never talk again.

She looks up from her phone and at the sight of me she jumps up and skips in my direction. "How awesome was it out there tonight? Everything went better than I even expected it too! I think the future looks bright for the three of us Ziggy."

_Ziggy. _Again she uses the cute pet name. "Yeah, AJ. I thought it went great."

"You don't sound so convinced. By the way I just spoke with Vince and he thought that we did amazing out there. He also mentioned how he thinks we have some definite chemistry between us. I agree with him."

"Yeah yeah, great on screen chemistry I get it, look AJ I need you to be completely honest with me. What's the real reason for all of this?

She tilts her head to the side and fashions a puzzled look on her face. "What do you mean by that?"

"What I mean is I can't seem to shake the feeling that you're not telling me everything. So is there any other reasons why you felt the need to screw John over and most importantly, why you want me of all people to be your on screen boyfriend?" The question I have been begging to ask has finally found its way past my lips. I can only hope that you can be honest with me AJ.

She pauses for a while and starts playing with the strands of her hair. _She's nervous. _That's not a good sign. "I told you the reasons why Dolph. John didn't care about me, Vickie made my life a misery and aligning with you should be the best thing for our careers. On top of all that, we get to be friends again."

There she goes again making me believe in the words she speaks. She looks breath-taking tonight. That makes it all the more harder to resist believing in what she says. But even her beauty isn't enough to extinguish the doubts in my mind. I look down to the floor and release a massive sigh. I think she can sense my unsettled state and places both of her hands on my face.

"Hey. I don't know why you feel this way but I'm here for you okay. You trust me, right?"

I'm sorry AJ. I've loved the moments that you've allowed me back into your life, and as much as I'm probably going to regret what I'm about to say, I have to be brutally honest with you.

"No. I don't trust you."

* * *

**Thought I'd update a chapter before Raw. I've heard that Dolph and AJ will be on the show tonight which makes me a happy woman and will probably give me a little more inspiration for future chapters. Hope you all liked the chapter and reviews are most certainly welcome. :') **


	7. Chapter 7

AJ's pov

_I slowly withdraw my hands from his face. "you don't trust me?"_

_"I'm sorry but can you blame me? Three days ago I thought you hated me and then you suddenly want me as your on-screen boyfriend. Not to mention all the weird stuff you've done over the past year to mess with people's minds. I don't know what was storyline and what wasn't but it's really hard to trust you after all that AJ."_

_Are these words really coming out of his mouth? I thought we were on the same page and rebuilding our friendship but now he tells me he doesn't trust me? My heart is sinking at the thought. "But,I.. I thought we.."_

_"Oh and another thing. How am I supposed to trust you after you failed to let me know that John is dating Nikki."_

_He knows? Oh my god he knows. I knew I should have told him myself before some other idiot did. But how is that a reason not to trust me? "How do you know about that?"_

_"Oh so you do know? Zack told me, but why wouldn't you? That's obviously one of the main reasons for going all wacko on Cena so why wouldn't you be honest with me?"_

_"I didn't tell you about that because I know how much you cared about Nikki and I thought it might be weird to know she's with John. I was just scared that knowing about them would hurt you."_

_"You expect me to believe that? I want to be friends again AJ, I really do but it's hard when I'm not sure whether you're lying to me or if you're just using me to get back at both John and Nikki."_

_My heart's beating extra fast. My hands have started to shake. Is he going to leave me like everyone else? I don't think I can cope with another person walking out of my life. "So what now, you just gonna drop all of this?"_

_"No. Well, I don't know. You said that I wouldn't regret this and already I'm having doubts. I just don't know what to do right now AJ."_

_His facial expression screams confusion. Well done AJ you've done it again. Messed with another guy's head to the point where you've lost him. How could everything feel so perfect five minutes ago? "You do know what to do Dolph. You've just made that perfectly clear."_

_I turn around to leave the locker room before he can say anything else. Let him think that you're not hurt by this. Don't let him be the one to leave but instead, you leave him._

* * *

"The future world champion. WWE's best butt wiggler. The man who stuffs my stocking. The show off, Dolph Ziggler."

It was 6 days ago that I walked out on him. We hadn't really spoken much since apart from obviously right now because we have to film some sappy Christmas eve 'under the mistletoe' segments. I'm surprised Dolph hasn't spoken to Vince and begged him to let him go on his own. It's funny, I was actually excited about filming these when I heard about it last week but since I found out the idiot can't even trust me, I don't even want to be around him.

He seductively removes the glasses from my face and then throws them onto the couch. How is it that everything Dolph does is so seductive? Even the way he's just staring into my eyes is lustful. Why oh why does he have to have the most gorgeous blue eyes? I'm a total sucker for blue eyes. Damn it Dolph I'm trying not to like you in any way.

It doesn't help that he looks extra damn handsome today. It's not like he's made an extra effort or anything but the way a v neck t-shirt looks so good on him should be illegal. And what is this cologne he's wearing? I can literally feel myself getting sucked in and ready to kiss him. Snap out of it AJ and focus on the script.

I push him backwards so he's standing directly underneath the mistletoe. He stands there with a bewildered look on his face. My god Dolph you are so cheesy.

"I just wanted to get you under the mistletoe."

I move closer to him and gently throw my arms around his neck. Time for the big kiss. Let's get this over with so I can get away from his perfectly intoxicating scent. I slowly lean in to kiss him and finally our lips connect. This feels less forced than the slammy awards kiss. It feels.. natural. It's as if we're not even being filmed but instead we're just doing what we both want to do. Of course that's not true though, Dolph could never feel that way about me. If he couldn't have feelings for an amazing woman like Kaitlyn there's no way in hell that he would like me. Story of my life.

As we both deepen the kiss I struggle to not get lost in the moment. He's such a good kisser though. He knows exactly how to send shivers down any woman's spine. Ugh, AJ you're really starting to develop feelings for this guy aren't you? What happened to only wanting this to be for TV?

Suddenly I feel him clutch to my back a little bit tighter and we crash into the Christmas tree. Was that in the script? Because of the ridiculousness of the moment we both start to laugh uncontrollably. Who gets so lost into a kiss that they fall into a tree? Dolph finally stops laughing and I look up at his face. His piercing blue eyes lock on to my brown ones and we are both just scanning each other's facial expressions. I've noticed we both tend to do that a lot. He lifts his hand to move a strand of my hair behind my ear and I can feel my cheeks start to burn. Such a simple yet sweet gesture.

I realise the awkwardness of the situation as I'm lying on top of him in front of a few camera guys. I quickly jump off the show-off's body and straighten my clothes out.

"That was great guys. I like the falling into the tree part. I think we'll keep that in the show. See you next week." That damn Malcom the tech guy. He has such an annoying voice.

Dolph scrambles up from the floor and brushes off all of the needles from the tree. I notice that we're the only two left in the room and that must mean it's time for me to make my exit. I don't want to be standing in here so awkwardly with him when we've barely spoken since last Tuesday.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"Um, I'm going to go get changed and then get a cab to the airport." What do you think I'm going to do Dolph? Just stand around with you when you probably can't stand me right now.

"Okay, but before you go I think I need to apologise for last week. I came down pretty harsh on you and I'm really sorry about that."

He's sorry? He's clearly not. He doesn't trust me and I don't even blame him for that.

"No you don't have to be sorry about anything Dolph. I wasn't completely honest with you and you have every right to not trust me."

He looks shocked at my words. Isn't that what he wanted to hear? "Well, um. I still think I was way out of order and it wasn't fair to just full on cut you down like that."

"It was fair. I understand that I have a pretty messed up track record and I didn't tell you about John and Nikki like I should have done."

"That doesn't bother me anymore, you shouldn't have to tell me every single detail. I over reacted and.."

"No you didn't. You had every right to know because of course that's one of the main reasons for doing what I did. But just so you know, I honestly didn't tell you because I thought it might hurt you and that's the last thing I wanted to do."

"AJ.."

"We should end this."

"What?"

"We should end this whole thing before it gets started. If you're already having doubts about everything then I shouldn't force you into doing this with me. I'm sorry."

"Woah, no. I think we.."

"I'm going to go find Vince and tell him that it's not going to work out. I'm just really sorry Dolph."

I quickly run out of the room. My heart is beating incredibly fast and I just want to cry my eyes out. I genuinely believe all of this would work out. I think it's time for AJ Lee to forget about men and focus on anything else. And hell, who knows? Maybe some day Dolph will be able to trust me.

* * *

**Quick message to say thanks to everyone who's reading and enjoying the story. You all rock! **


	8. Chapter 8

AJ's pov

Vince will accept my request to end the pairing of me and Dolph, right? Surely he will. If he doesn't think it's working out much like I do he won't want to continue it on people's television screens. I wouldn't really say that it's not working out though. It's just, how can I continue to pretend I'm in a relationship with a man who doesn't trust me and probably doesn't want me around. It also wouldn't be a good idea to stay together seeing as all of these old feelings are starting to arise again. No, breaking away from Dolph is honestly the best thing I can do right now.

I'm still rushing down the halls peeking around every door available to see if I can find the chairman. Ah, the divas locker room. I'm pretty sure he won't be in there but I can see if one of the girls knows where he is. I push the grey steel door open and the sight that I see before me is of Kaitlyn and Layla. So Layla is Kait's new BFF right? Typical. I didn't expect it to take long for her to forget about me and find the next best thing. Well Kaitlyn, will Layla obsess over unicorns and mustaches with you as much as I do? Will Layla stay up with you until 5am just to watch The Simpsons re-runs with you? I'm betting that she won't. Oh AJ, focus. You need to find Vince now, forget about those two.

I escape the locker room before the two divas notice that I was in there and I'm once again dashing around trying to find my boss. What if he says no? What if I have to stay by Dolph's side for months or even worse, years? There's no way in hell that I would be able to handle that. Just being out there every night pretending that I really like the guy and that we're so happy will just be the hardest task I'll ever face. _Although, there wouldn't be much pretending when it comes to me liking him._

Finally I find an authority figure for the company who I can talk to. It isn't Vince Mcmahon but it is his amazing daughter, and my idol, Stephanie. I take a moment to observe how stunning this woman is. She truly is the definition of perfection. That's what I was striving to be like when I was general manager. Clad in a power suit and not taking anyone's crap.

"Hey, Steph do you have a minute?"

"Of course AJ, anything for you sweetheart. I've only got a few minutes though." Well that little comment certainly brightened this awful day that I'm having. Try to keep the fangirling on the minimum AJ.

"Great, um where is Vince today? I was looking to speak with him but he's nowhere to be found."

"Oh my dad isn't here tonight. He's been having some hip problems as of late so he's just with the doctor right now. He might be arriving here late though, I'm not sure."

That's odd. In the few years that I've been with the company I don't think Vince has ever not been here. "Okay, well I can talk to you right? Um, I just wanted to talk to you about my situation with Dolph Ziggler. I wanted to say.."

"We wanted to say that we're both so grateful for this opportunity to work together. We're both enjoying it and we're going to work extra hard to become one of the best power couples in the company's history."

What the hell are you doing Dolph?! What gives you the right to just interrupt my conversation with one of the most influential women in my life?

"Well that's great to hear Dolph. Look I'd love to stay and chat about this, but I'm needed in a meeting in about five minutes so I must leave. Feel free to come talk with me at any other time." With a gentle smile the billion dollar princess takes her leave.

I watch her turn the corner and then remove Dolph's hand that has managed to sneak its way onto my shoulder. "What are you playing at? I was just about to fix things and you had to come and ruin it! Why?!"

"AJ ending things now is not going to fix things. It would only be a bad move, trust me."

"Ha! Trust you? What, you mean sorta like how you trust me?"

"Oh, stop bringing that up! My head was messed up when I said that okay, and I've apologised to you for it. Listen, we may as well give this thing a try. It really could be beneficial for me you and E."

"Whether you apologised for it or not Dolph, it doesn't change the fact that it hurt like hell when you told me that you couldn't trust me. I'm constantly going to be having this nagging feeling that you don't have any faith in my intentions with you. How can we make it work if it's always going to be like that?"

"The whole trust thing is gonna take some time to build on I'll admit, but it won't last forever. If you were honest about wanting to be a great power couple with Big E by our side, then we should continue it and prove that we're the best damn thing in sports entertainment today."

He said that whole thing with such emotion and energy. It's apparent that he feels passionately about this. I would never have expected that. He does have a point about all of this though. I was honest with wanting us to be an amazing power couple, and I really did want us to be a strong force within the WWE. I feel a desperate urge within me to prove my loyalty to him.

"You're right. We've gotta make this work and we will, I promise." A proud smile creeps on Mr. money in the bank's face. I take a few steps closer towards him so that our bodies are mere inches apart. "I can also promise you this _Ziggy_. It's only a matter of time before you trust me like you used to."

* * *

The Royal Rumble match. One of my personal favourite matches in all of the WWE. My Ziggy entered at number 1 this year and he has been the longest lasting entrant. To say that I'm proud right now is an understatement.

Unfortunately he just this minute got eliminated, but he did what he set out to do and that is to steal the show. This makes me a very joyful on-screen girlfriend. I'm so blissfully happy with how things are going between us right now. I think over the weeks we've been doing this we have slowly been rebuilding our friendship and I may have even got him to trust me. The three of us have been working hard and spending a lot of time together. It's been perfect. It's strange to think that I even wanted to end it at all.

I walk from the television monitor to the curtain to wait for Dolph to make his way backstage. I hope he's not disappointed with losing the rumble match, because being the longest competitor is truly a remarkable feat. I will be sure to provide him with lots of positive feedback when I see him.

The familiar figure that I've been waiting to see finally appears through the black curtains. The future world champion looks out of breath but happy and he's making his way over to me. Before I can even have a chance to congratulate him, he wraps his arms around me for an embrace.

Despite the fact that he's practically dripping with sweat from the match I place my hands on his back to return the hug. During this I can't help but think back to our kiss just before the match. The long, drawn out, passionate kiss that was **not** supposed to happen in front of the WWE universe. Sure, we were supposed to kiss before the match like always, but we were not supposed to kiss like that, for that length of time. Maybe we both just got carried away in the excitement of the event, but I'm starting to wonder whether it meant more than that.

"Congratulations Dolph! You were amazing out there. You're definitely living up to your gimmick of stealing the show."

He pulled back from me but still left his hand on my shoulder for support. "Thanks AJ. That means a lot."

I straightened out his hair which has honestly become a minor obsession of mine over recent weeks. I can see him look to see if anyone was around and then his eyes connected with mine for a few seconds. "Um, AJ?"

"Yeah?"

"How about we go celebrate?"

"How?"

"Let's go do something fun or grab a bite to eat. I'm starved."

"What, you mean like on a date?" No AJ, why would he want to go on a date with you? He sees you as nothing more than a friend. You're so stupid for jumping to conclusions.

"Yeah, like on a date."

"Are you serious?!" He's really asking me out? I can feel my heart rate start to speed up. What is it about him that makes me feel like this?

"Yes I'm serious." He started laughing and I looked to the floor in embarrassment of asking him such a stupid question. He lifted my head up so I was looking in his direction again and his face exuded complete sincerity. "AJ, will you please go on a date with me tonight?"

* * *

**So again, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'm happy to see people are still reading my story! Reviews are helpful and appreciated, and I hope you all have a great day. :)**


	9. Chapter 9

Dolph's pov

AJ Lee. The most erratic, childish, confusing, troublesome and temperamental woman that I've ever come across in my life. She also however happens to be the most stunning, charismatic, amusing, affectionate and surprising woman too. And I adore every single quality about her. It's been just over a month since I realised my feelings for AJ and after the amazing night I've had I plucked up the courage to ask her on a date. _And she said yes. _I know I know, why would one of the cockiest men in sports entertainment today need to pluck up the courage to ask the girl who is already his on screen girlfriend on a date? Simple. I'm not exactly like who I'm perceived to be on TV.

I'll admit, I'm pretty damn cocky because you know what, you have to be to survive in this business. But am I actually a total heartless dude who really steals people's girlfriends? Not at all. Anyway, I think I should send AJ a text to let her know I'm ready and waiting to go on our date.

_'Hey, I'm just in the parking lot waiting in my car. Come out whenever you're ready x –Dolph.'_

I put the phone back into my jacket pocket and start to tap on the steering wheel. Wow, I think I'm actually nervous for this date. It's not like I've never been on one before or anything, it's just I don't want this to end in disaster like some of the previous dates I have been on. Me and AJ have to work alongside each other every day, I can't even imagine how awkward it would be if we had a date from hell. Maybe this was a bad idea.

To stop my negative thinking, I see AJ walking out of the arena. Just looking at her almost takes my breath away. How does she manage to look that good? She's wearing a plain black top with her own custom design cut into it, grey jeans and her infamous knee high black converse. _Nothing hotter than a chick in chucks. _Ha, I think I remember putting a tweet saying that.

She smiles when she notices I'm looking at her and makes her way into the passenger seat of my car. "If I'd have known we were going on a date tonight sooner, I would have packed better clothes to wear for such an occasion."

"Are you kidding me? I think you look amazing." I see that brought an even bigger smile to her face. _I really love making her smile._

"You're too sweet. So Mr money in the bank, where are you taking me?"

"I live around here, so I know the perfect restaurant for us to go. I think you're going to love it."

"I'm very intrigued."

* * *

"Isn't this the restaurant that me, you, Kaitlyn and Zack came too and Zack ended up choking on his food?"

"Oh my god I think it is! Yeah, and you wouldn't stop giggling about it for like an hour." That was such a fun night. Me and Zack were just getting to know the 'chickbusters' and decided to come out for a meal after a taping. I can't believe I didn't remember that it was the exact same restaurant that we're in now.

"Hey I couldn't help it! It was one of the funniest things I have ever seen! I don't think Zack liked the fact that I was laughing at him so much though. Then again I don't think Zack has ever really liked me."

"I don't think that's true. I think you two just didn't have that much in common so he never knew how to be around you."

"Maybe so, but he always gave me the impression that he didn't like me."

"If that's the case then he clearly never saw how awesome you are like how I did."

She smiles at my comment and then takes a sip of her water. I can see her cheeks turning a shade of red. _How cute._

"Well Dolph, I think this has been a pretty amazing first date." And it has. Probably the best first date I've ever been on. Amazing food, amazing service and really amazing company.

"I'm glad you thought so AJ. I think it's been pretty amazing too."

"I do think that we should be going though. It's just gone midnight and I think this place is ready for closing."

I looked at my watch and damn it she was right. It's 20 past 12! I suppose it is understandable seeing as we left the arena pretty late. "Okay. I'll pay the bill and let's get out of here."

I paid the appropriate amount for the meal and left a 40% tip for the kind hospitality of the waitress who served us. Just before we left the establishment I placed my hand into AJ's. She seemed to like the small gesture, which makes me all the more happy. As we walk to the car I can tell that she keeps looking up at me. I finally look in her direction to see the grin on her face.

"You know, in a million years I never would have figured that you would ask me on a date."

I stop just at the hood of the car. Is she for real? What in the world would make her think that I wouldn't want to date her? "Why's that?"

"I always assumed that you would go for someone like Kaitlyn or any of the other diva's. I didn't expect you to ask the resident nerdy girl to go out to dinner with you. Oh and I especially didn't think you'd ask me out after all of the ups and downs we've had over the past few months."

"There's nothing wrong with nerdy girls! It's actually pretty hot when a girl is nerdy. I think we need to put all the crappy stuff that's happened lately behind us and as for the Kaitlyn thing, you know I've never seen her as anything more than a friend."

"Yeah I know, but I don't understand why you wouldn't like her. She's got the full package."

"Look, Kait's great but she's not really my type. Besides, I never thought you would have said yes to coming on a date with me."

"Oh really? You think I'd pass up on a date with a handsome man who makes me laugh and also offers to buy me some food? I'd never turn that down."

"So you think I'm handsome?"

I immediately catch sight of the look on her face. She just knows that I'm never going to let her live this one down. "Did I just say that?"

"I believe you did. You said I'm a handsome man who makes you laugh."

"Then it must be true."

She has the most devilish smile on her face and her eyes are twinkling in the moonlight. Could she get any more stunning? Sensing the rightfulness of the moment, I take a step forward and brush a strand of hair behind her ear. I leave my hand on her cheek and slowly lean in for a kiss.

"OH MY GOD! Dolph and AJ! Here, together! Could.. Could I please get a picture with you two?"

Moment ruined. Just as I was about to have my first kiss with AJ that wasn't just for the cameras, this little bratty kid has to spoil it. AJ looked at me knowing I was starting to get mad.

"Sure sweetheart. Dolph, she can have a photo with us, right?"

Why does she have to be so nice to the children? "Yeah sure, why not."

We both put our arms around the little blonde girl who looks to be aged around ten years old and her mum took the photo.

"Thank you both so much. You two are my favourites. Bye!" Ah well she was actually a sweet girl. I feel kinda bad for calling her bratty kid now. I turn to look at AJ and find that she is now laughing at me. How joyous. "Oh my god, you looked like you wanted to kill her! She was only a fan who wanted a picture!"

"I know, I know. Anyway changing the subject, I've had a pretty great date, who says it has to end?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well not everywhere will be closed at this time. Why don't I take you to one of my favourite places in Phoenix?"

"That sounds.. perfect."

* * *

**This was really just a filler chapter but hope you guys liked it anyway :)**


	10. Chapter 10

Dolph's pov

"So your favourite place in Phoenix is actually your home?"

"Technically this is my back yard but yeah, this is my most favourite place in Phoenix."

"It is beautiful, I'll give you that."

"Thanks, I know I have great taste."

I decided to take AJ to my home here in Phoenix as the last part of our date. We're both going to leave for raw tomorrow and I wanted to take her somewhere I thought was beautiful to end an amazing night. I turn the outside lamps on and quickly grab some drinks from the kitchen for the two of us. As I make my way towards AJ I notice that she's completely enthralled with my swimming pool.

"Get in if you want to."

She looks up at me and takes the glass of coke out of my hand. "No, it's okay. It's not like I have any swimwear anyway."

"Where's your sense of adventure? Just get in with your clothes on."

"No! It's fine honestly. Let's just talk about something."

I can clearly see she wants to get in the pool. I really hope she doesn't mind what I'm about to do next but I can't help myself. I place both of our drinks on the floor and scoop the petite woman up over my shoulder.

"DOLPH! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" She keeps hitting my back and I'm trying my hardest not to laugh as her punches feel like tiny taps. I run and jump into the pool with her in my arms and create a huge splash of water. As I just manage to come up from under the water I can see AJ coming up for air too.

"You're such a jerk! My whole damn make-up will be ruined now not to mention my chucks will be soaked!"

"Aw c'mon, I know you have another 5 pairs of chucks in your suitcase and you look beautiful even if you had no make-up on so calm down!"

I can see that my compliment has won her over and she starts to giggle. _I just love hearing her laugh. _I swim a little closer to her so I can move the wet strands of hair away from her eyes. Playing with each other's hair has definitely become our shtick.

"Can you believe that around two months ago you were calling me trash in a locker room?"

"It feels like a lifetime ago. I'm so sorry about that by the way. You know I never meant that, right?"

"Yeah I know. You said it just to get to Cena, I fully understand that."

"Good. Anyway, can you believe that two months ago you and the franchise had a thing? What were you thinking?!"

"Hey! I know John isn't the greatest man in the world but I could have done a lot worse. Besides, you were with Vickie! How much worse can you get than that?"

I've gotta laugh at that. The lady has a point. "Okay, so we've both made mistakes in weird previous relationships. It's all in the past now." I look towards her to see that she's nibbling on her lip. Ah, AJ I know you only do that when you're dying to ask me something, so spit it out.

"So I know you've just said that it's all in the past and everything, and I really don't want to ruin the date by talking about exes, but I've been trying to talk to you about Nikki for the past month and every time I do, you avoid the subject."

There is a reason why I avoid the subject when it comes to Nikki. It's not exactly the easiest topic of conversation for me. I sigh deeply ready to open up to the girl I really like about this. "What do you want to know about her?"

"I.. I just wanted to know what happened with you two. You were together for a long time and I just never knew what happened."

"Well, basically Nikki was the only girl I've ever really loved. I er.. I thought we had a lot in common and we got along great. I fell in love and she broke my heart. That's that."

Her brown orbs scan my face and I can sense that she's taking pity on me. "I'm sorry for asking. I'm just a little unsure of how she could hurt you or why she would even want to for that matter."

"It's okay, you have a right to know I guess. We just grew apart and for the last few months of our relationship she just acted really strange and started to become really malicious towards me. On the night we broke up at this awful club, that's when I really knew she was a total bitch."

AJ moves even closer to me. "Why, what did she do?"

"She got really mad at me because I arrived at the club with Zack and not her so we ended up having a huge argument outside. She told me to go to hell and then went in the club and made out with some random guy in front of me. I was in total shock. I mean, who does that? We ended things that night and I've never spoken to her since."

"What a freaking bitch! That is awful."

"Eh, it doesn't bother me as much as it used to anymore. Now how about you answer a question of mine concerning past relationships."

I can see that she immediately regrets asking me about Nikki. She starts to swim around the pool to avoid any questions. I lean back against the side staring at her knowing that she isn't going to get away with not answering my questions.

"Fine. What is your question Ziggy?"

I swim closer towards where she is while I think of what question to ask her. Ah, I know exactly what to ask her. "You said to me a while ago that you've always had a thing for me but you never felt good enough. Which idiot hurt you so bad that they made you think that you weren't good enough for someone like me?"

That question caught her by surprise. Our bodies are practically touching now. I can feel the body heat radiating from her tanned skin. We share an intense stare and I can tell that she's trying to figure out what to say to me next.

"Well.. erm.. great question by the way. I don't think it's a particular guy that made me feel that way, but.. a culmination of everything I've been through in my life.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I've always been self-conscious. Most guys that I've liked have always gone for either Kaitlyn or another girl and none of my relationships ever end well. I think I've always carried around this feeling of not being good enough and I obviously think that you're a pretty great guy so it didn't make sense for you to like me."

This girl really is crazy. Doesn't she realise how amazing she is? "You're literally insane. You have absolutely nothing to be self-conscious about." Again, I mess with her hair so it is not covering her graceful features. "You, Miss AJ Lee, are beautiful, fiery, charming, funny, generous, sexy and I could honestly go on all night about all of your flawless attributes, but I don't want to boost your ego _too _much."

Her eyes are sparkling and I detect that tears are starting to appear. "Why are you so sweet to me? I just don't understand, especially after all the crap that I've put you through."

"Because you deserve to be told how perfect you are. Although I don't know why I bother, you're never this nice about me" I follow with a flirty wink. She has that devilish smile plastered on her face that I adore and wraps her arms around my neck.

"Okay show off. Maybe you deserve to be told how perfect _you _are too. You are simply gorgeous, strong, charismatic, confident, kind, caring and I could go on all night about _your _ flawless attributes but instead I want to do this."

And before I know it, her lips are on mine. I smile into the kiss because of how utterly **perfect **this whole night has been. What better moment can there be than kissing the girl you care for in one of your most favourite spots. I may be the happiest man alive. I think the only moment that could top this would be if I won the championship right now. _All in due time, Dolph._

Her fingers run through my hair as I deepen the kiss by running my tongue across her lips. I can feel her legs wrap around my waist and I quickly remember the night of our first on screen kiss. _Who would have thought that the next similar kiss to that would have been in water? _As much as I'm enjoying the moment, I can feel myself getting carried away so I break the kiss and remove her legs from my waist.

"What.. what's wrong?"

"Nothing, honestly. It's just.. this is our first date."

"Don't you like me enough or something?"

"Are you kidding me AJ? Of course I like you. I **really **like you. I just don't want to rush things on our first date that's all."

"And here I was thinking you couldn't get any more amazing." She smiles and leans up to leave another kiss on my lips. "I _really_ like you too, you know."

"Then let's take things slow, okay? Let's just start dating each other and see where things go from there." She nods at what I say and I take hold of her hand. "Let's go inside and get dried off. Big day tomorrow."

As we walked back into my home soaking wet, I wrap my arm around her small frame. For the first time in a long time I'm so excited about the future. Maybe this is the start of something wonderful.

* * *

**Chapter update before elimination chamber. My main hope for tonight is that we actually get to see Dolph + AJ, and hopefully Dolph cashes in. Enjoy the pay-per-view guys. :) **


	11. Chapter 11

AJ's pov

Butterflies. That's what I get whenever I'm around Dolph. _Butterflies. _

I am now dating the most amazing man on the face of the earth. A man who is so compassionate and sweet. A man who has this insane ability to make me smile whenever I'm down. A man who also happens to be extremely sexy.

I stretch out in the large bed after one of the best night's sleeps I've had in a long time. Dolph let me stay in his guest bedroom instead of paying for a hotel. _Just another reason why he's incredibly amazing._ Even though it was about 7 hours ago since we were in the pool together, my hair is still quite damp. A smile creeps on my face as I think about the kiss that we shared in there. _He's such a good kisser._

Is that pancakes that I can smell? Is Dolph making breakfast? Oh my, this just gets even better. I grab a random t-shirt from my suitcase which happens to be Dolph's 'stealing the show' shirt and throw it over my body. As I make my way down to the kitchen to hopefully steal some delicious smelling pancakes, I notice a bunch of photo's in the hallway. Memories from all aspects of Dolph's life. There are a few pictures with Zack, some with his family, some cute childhood photos and then there are two pictures in particular that stand out to me. The first is a picture of him and Nikki, presumably on holiday. He has his arm around her and he looks so happy. Why does he still have photos of that witch? _Don't get too worked up AJ, it probably doesn't mean anything._

The second photo that is hanging on the wall in a beautiful silver frame is a photo of me and him. A picture that I don't even remember being taken. I do remember the day that it was taken on though, and it was a pretty awesome day from what I can remember. It was just before we were taping the second episode of NXT season 3. Me, him and a few others were training in the ring. We both aren't looking towards the camera in this pic, but we're laughing as I had just had him in a headlock for about five minutes and he joked about almost being choked out. Ah, good times. It brings a genuine smile to my face to know he has this picture but still, why does he have that horrid woman on his wall now they're not together anymore?

I try to shake the image of him and Nikki all happy and together out of my mind as I trudge down his spiral staircase. The sight before me brings back familiar feelings that I felt last night. Butterflies.

Dolph is currently standing in the spacious kitchen cooking breakfast. _Shirtless_. The fangirl within me is having a field day right now. He notices me standing awkwardly on the stairs and smiles instantly.

"Hey babe, I made breakfast for you. Hope you're hungry."

_Babe. _Such a simple and generic word used by many people in modern day society. Yet it's a word that whenever it crosses this man's lips, it sends shivers down my spine. The fangirling gets worse as I realise that this is the first time he's ever called me babe when we're not in front of the cameras.

"I'm starving. It smells yummy by the way."

"Well you look pretty yummy in my t-shirt _by the way."_ He says with a wink. He's such a tease.

I walk pretty swiftly towards the breakfast table and sit on the ivory chair. I can't seem to tear my eyes away from his perfectly chiselled body. What is wrong with me? I see this guy almost every night in nothing more than just trunks and yet at this moment he looks so damn good he should be arrested. I take a bite of the pancakes and holy crap, wow. He's a damn good cook. Is there anything this man can't do well?

"This is so good! Are you sure that you made it?"

He quickly turns around towards me with an extremely offended look on his face. "I am hurt by your words AJ! Pancakes are my specialty, of course they're good!"

"Okay, sorry. I think you're going to have to make me more pancakes in the future Ziggy."

He smiles at what I say and then finally takes a seat across from me.

"So I was thinking.. We had a pretty fantastic date last night, why don't we have another one today?"

I can't tell if he's happy that I mentioned the fact that I want to go on another date or if he's shocked that I wanted to go on one today. Damn, I hope I haven't scared him away.

"AJ I'd love to go on another date with you, it's just I have a day full of media and then we have raw tonight. There's not gonna be enough time I'm afraid."

"It's okay. It was just a thought anyway."

He leans across the table and gently places his hand under my chin. He moves his head closer to mine to leave a tender kiss on my lips.

"I do want to go on a second date with you though babe."

* * *

Today I've been so lonely. Shortly after breakfast I had to leave Dolph so he could go to his media day and I had to find literally anything to do. For the most of the day I've been training in the ring and hitting the gym. It's just not as fun when not that many people like you so you don't have anyone to go with.

I've been constantly thinking about how Dolph still has a picture of him and Nikki. It shouldn't bother me right? I mean he's clearly over her and he actually likes me. I don't know, it's just, if you break up with someone, aren't you supposed to remove the pictures of them? I can't shake this idea in the back of my mind that he may still have feelings for her. Well this sucks.

I'm stood by the titantron watching Chris Jericho make his way to the ring. The three of us are scheduled to go interrupt Chris and then an impromptu tag match will be made. The thing is, Where's Dolph?

Just as I wonder where Mr money in the bank has gotten too, his hand sneaks around my waist. At the slightest touch I can feel my body start to tingle.

"Hey gorgeous. You ready to steal the show with me?"

"As always. Even though you're going to lose the match tonight, I know you're going to put on an awesome show out there."

"I'll do my best. Hey look, you know how you said you wanted to go on a second date today?"

Oh did he have to remind me? I'm still kind of embarrassed about being the one to ask him. "Yeah, I remember. What of it?"

"Seeing as we're both the kind of people who don't get much sleep, how about we rent a room together and watch films for most of the night. I'll let you pick of course."

"Are you sure? What if you're too tired from your match?"

"Are you kidding? I spent fifty minutes in the rumble last night and still went out with you. I'll be more than okay to have a second date."

"Okay then. Watching films with you sounds great, but can I quickly ask you about something?"

"Sure babe. Anything you like."

There he goes again. _Babe._ He truly melts my heart. "I don't want to sound jealous or like a crazy obsessive girlfriend in any way, but this has been bugging me all day. Why do you still have a picture of you and Nikki on the wall in your house?" There. I said it. I hope he doesn't freak out on me seeing as we have a segment to do in a minute.

"Oh, that. I don't know I just have pictures of random moments that meant a lot to me." Meant a lot to him? So does she still mean a lot to him? "I was actually going to take it down because you know, I can't stand her anymore. I'm just not home much that's all, so I always forget."

"I'm not begging you to take it down you know, you can leave it there if you want I just thought it was pretty odd."

He stands directly in front of me and places his hands on my face. "I can tell what you're thinking AJ and you need to stop. I do not in any way shape or form still have feelings for Nikki. Okay?"

"Okay." Well that puts my mind at rest a little bit. Not completely though. "So we'll meet up after the show and have our second date."

"Yes and.." Big E walked up to us to stop our tender little moment. What a buzzkill. Dolph's theme starts to blare through the speakers of the arena and that marks our cue to go out and confront Jericho. Just before we walk through the curtain Dolph leans in close to whisper something in my ear. "and I can't wait."

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**Thanks for the kind reviews. They always put a smile on my face. You all rock!**


	12. Chapter 12

AJ's pov

"Quick question, why do you have a huge pack of jellybeans in your briefcase?"

"Why not? I have to use that damn thing as a carry on, so I might want to eat some jellybeans on the plane."

"But.. there's like 5000 jellybeans in this packet. There's loads!"

Dolph let out a roar of laughter. Personally I don't think what I said was too funny. I'll let him off anyway because his laugh is so cute. We're currently in this pretty rad hotel watching a lame chick flick. Whilst making the show off laugh, my head is laid across his legs and he's playing with my hair. _We're so darn precious._

"That is such an over exaggeration AJ. There is no-where near that amount."

"Well it seems like there is. I'm not complaining anyway, it just means more sweets for me to steal from you."

"You can steal absolutely anything from me babe, and I probably wouldn't even mind."

I swear one of these days I'm going to wake up from a dream, because **no-one** has ever treated me this well. Not my family, not my friends and most definitely none of my ex-boyfriends. And the funny thing is, he's not even my boyfriend yet. This is only our second date! I lift my head up from his body and deeply observe the way he looks. So damn handsome, that's how he looks. He's wearing his Kent state top that he wore when we first met. His hair is barely gelled, but still looks slicked back. His eyes are such a stunning shade of blue. I think that's my most favourite feature on him. Most girls would probably say his faultless body is his best quality, but his blue eyes are so enchanting, just looking at them makes my heart flutter.

"Let's talk about something."

"Okay but why, aren't you enjoying the film?"

"No the film is.. great. I'd just rather talk to you, that's all."

He smirks at me and then turns the TV off. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I mentioned the picture with you and Nikki earlier. Well, next to it there was a picture of me and you and I've never seen it before. Who took that?"

"Zack took that photo. He gave it to me not long after you said that you didn't want to talk to me. I put it on my wall because I thought it was a great shot and, you know, I also missed you a lot."

I wrapped my arms around his torso and cuddled up to him feeling guilt over that memory. "I'm so sorry about that. I wish I'd have never said that to you."

"It's fine, I get why you did. Anyway, that day was pretty fun right? I think we spent all day together just talking about everything and then we wrestled with each other. I discovered how truly awesome you were that day."

"It was an incredible day. Speaking of Zack, are you and him okay now? I know you mentioned a while ago that you weren't talking."

"I don't know. I spoke with him just before I came to meet you to leave the arena. I wouldn't say we're best friends again but it's not like we're enemies."

"I'm sure you'll be best buds again soon enough. You two love each other way too much deep down."

"Hey, you're one to talk. Let's change the subject and talk about _your_ best friend who you love deep down."

Are we really going to talk about my **former** best friend who once had a fixation with you Dolph? That's kinda awkward. "I'd rather not talk about her right now."

"AJ don't be like that. I know you're hurt over the fact that you and her aren't friends anymore. I know you way too well."

"If you know me way too well Dolph, you'll know that I don't want to talk about the woman who is the reason for us not talking for two years."

"Babe, she isn't the sole reason for why we stopped talking. You just wanted to be a good friend by her and thought that you were doing the right thing by cutting me out of your life."

"The whole thing between me and her is still a sore subject. And honestly the fact that we didn't talk for two years is pretty tough for me to even think about too, especially considering how we talk every day now."

"That's behind us now. I think the best thing for both of us would be to forget about all that bad stuff, focus on what's good and stop falling out with people who mean a lot to us."

The man has a point. Then again what he's saying probably just sounds more logical because he has such a sensual voice. I glide my fingers across his toned abs. "You're right Ziggy. It's all in the past now." For a while there was a soothing silence between the two of us until Dolph started to chuckle. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing. It's just I can't believe we're actually dating now."

"Oh, and that's making you laugh? I can leave you know, and that way we won't be dating at all."

"No! I don't mean that in a bad way, it's just.. I had such a crush on you back when we first met. I never thought you'd end up feeling the same way as me, never mind ending up dating me."

He liked me back when I was in NXT? I sorta liked him back then. I mean, I know I was totally attracted to him and always desired to be around him, but I think I forced myself to try and not feel that way for Kaitlyn's sake. "Seriously? I liked you back then too."

"Yeah. Well, I don't think I realised it properly. I think I only realised that I liked you just before we stopped being friends. That's who I meant when I said to you I have feelings for someone else you know."

"Oh my gosh, really? And I called you a dick when you said that. Wow I'm sorry."

He laughed that adorable laugh and started to run his fingers through my hair again. "It's fine. I had just turned your best friend down and made her cry, you could have called me so much worse."

"That's true. So Dolph changing the topic, do you still like being in this power couple with me?"

"Of course I do, you should know that. Why would you even ask?"

"I'm just checking. Don't want you to get bored of kissing me, that's all."

I look up to see what his reaction is and I can see a cheeky grin form upon his face. He pushes me away from his body and rolls me over so he's hovering above me. His face is mere centimetres away from mine and his eyes are blazing with pure lust. His hand brushes along my thigh leaving a tingling sensation on every part that he touches. "How could I _ever_ get bored of kissing you?"

I can sense where this is going so I wrap my arms around his neck and crash my lips onto his. He presses his body closer to mine and is clearly only too happy to reciprocate my affection. His hands make his way up my tiny frame and I push him onto his back so I am straddling his waist. I lift his shirt up over his head and start to leave a trail of soft kisses down his body.

Just as everything was going so seamlessly, my phone starts to go off. Damn it.

"I think you should probably answer that babe."

I release a groan as I do not want to answer whoever this idiot is that interrupted our moment. I remove my IPhone from my pocket and I did not expect to see that person calling me right now.

"It's Kaitlyn."

"Answer it and see what she wants."

I hesitate. Why would she be calling me at.. 12:30? What could she possibly want from _me_? I decide to click the green 'accept' button, but just as I'm about to do so, the call ends.

"Doesn't matter now anyway." I move to sit back down next to Dolph whilst staring at my phone the whole time. Why on earth would she call me?

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm totally fine. It's just a bit weird that she's calling me. I haven't spoken to her in months other than when we had that backstage segment where we beat each other up."

"Maybe she wants to be friends again."

"Ha, probably not. She may have just pocket dialled me. That seems more realistic seeing as she doesn't really care about me anymore."

"You've got to stop doing that."

"Doing what?"

"You've got to stop thinking that people don't care about you or that you're not good enough. AJ, you do it all the time and it's frustrating because I just don't get how you don't seem to see how remarkable you are."

Again, he's being the most considerate man on the planet. People who watch him on TV would never believe that this is the kind of man he really is deep down. "And you've got to stop being so damn sweet to me before my ego gets way too big."

"No seriously, I'll bet you anything that Kait called you because she wants you back as her friend. She'd be crazy if she didn't."

"Maybe she did. If she really wants something she'll call me back. Anyway, where were we handsome?"

I shuffle a little closer and for the second time tonight throw my arms around his neck. Dolph leaves a soft, gentle kiss on my lips before pulling back and smiling.

"Can I be completely honest with you AJ?"

I press my forehead against his much like how we did for those Christmas segments. "You know that you can."

"I think.. I think I'm falling in love with you."

* * *

**Did any of you read AJ and Dolph's tweets from last night? I ship them so much, it's unreal! Hope you enjoyed the chapter. :)**


	13. Chapter 13

Dolph's pov

**A few hours earlier.**

_"Dolph, can we talk?"_

_"I really don't have time Zack. I've gotta go meet AJ in the parking lot."_

_He scoffs at my mention of AJ. Forget this, I don't have time to listen to him be childish and complain about the girl that I'm dating. She's probably outside right now waiting for me and I know I'd much prefer to be in her company rather than the 'woo woo woo' kid._

_"So, what, are you and AJ dating now?"_

_"What's it to you?"_

_"I'm just asking. Once upon a time you used to tell me everything and now it's as if you don't even want to know me."_

_"Yeah? Does it really seem that way? Maybe you should take the hint."_

_Ouch. That was pretty low of me. The hurt stemming from what I said is now etched across his face. Great, now I'm feeling guilty._

_"Zack, I'm sorry. That was uncalled for. I just really have to get going."_

_"You didn't answer the question. Are you dating her?"_

_"Yes. We're going on our second date now."_

_"Okay. I'd love to be your protective best buddy and tell you that maybe you're making a mistake and I'm surprised you're dating her after everything she has done, but I'm honestly not surprised at all."_

_"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"_

_"Well, you've been completely in love with her since the day you met her. It was only a matter of time before you finally got with her."_

_What on earth is this idiot rambling on about? I'm not in love with AJ. We've only just started dating for crying out loud._

_"I don't know what you've been smoking Zack, but I'm not in love with her. I like her a lot and that's it."_

_"Don't even deny it bro. Think about it, since the day you two met you were always texting, flirting, and I literally couldn't get you to shut up about her if I tried. Think about how messed up you were when you stopped talking to each other and think about how happy you've been now she's back in your life. I may have not talked to you much lately but I can tell from a mile away when you're in love with someone. You were the same way with.."_

_"Don't even say her name."_

_"Okay I won't say it. But you know you feel the same way about AJ. Maybe even a little more."_

_Is he right? I know I was protective over AJ a few years ago. I know I cared about her and realised later on that I had feelings for her but.. Love? I don't know._

_"I don't know what to say to that. I think you're more crazy than what everyone else makes AJ out to be!"_

_"Oh come on Dolph! You say you like her a lot right? Well you've liked her a lot for just over two years now. No-one just likes someone that much for that long without being in love with them."_

_"Whatever man. I really have to go."_

_I can't deal with this crap at 10:30 on a Monday night. I don't want to think about being in love with AJ when we've just started dating. That's just too much right now. I shake my head hoping to try and think of something else as I'm about to make my exit out of the arena. _

_"Hey wait a minute."_

_God, Zack just doesn't quit. "What?"_

_"You've been a pretty big jerk over the past few months. But just so you know, I still consider you to be one of my best friends and if this thing goes wrong or you want to talk about anything, remember that I'll still be here for you no matter what."_

* * *

"Anyway, where were we handsome?"

AJ moves her petite frame closer to mine and throws her arms around my neck for the second time tonight. I lean forward to leave a tender kiss upon her lips and when I pull back I take a moment to study her. She really is gorgeous. She is the definition of mesmerising. Whenever I'm around her she just seems to captivate me. It's almost as if she has me under some sort of spell. Zack's words are still playing on my mind. Maybe he is right. Maybe I _am_ in love with her.

Even if I was, who could blame me? She's one of the greatest girls I've ever met. If I'm completely honest with myself, I don't think I _ever _felt this way about Nikki. She just didn't get me the way AJ does.

"Can I be completely honest with you AJ?"

She smiles and the presses her forehead to mine. Kinda reminds me of those silly yet romantic Christmas segments that we filmed not so long ago. "You know that you can."

Here goes nothing. "I think.. I think I'm falling in love with you."

She slowly pulls away from me, clearly in shock over the words that I have just uttered to her and says "Oh."

**Oh. **I tell her something so monumental in our relationship for the first time and all she can say is 'Oh'. She gets up, walks over to her suitcase and starts playing around with something inside it.

"Um, AJ? Did you hear what I just said?"

"I heard you."

This wasn't exactly the kind of reaction I was hoping to get from her. I thought she would at least be a little more receptive of my feelings. Or did I just imagine everything that's happened between the two of us lately?

"Well I.. uhh.."

"Why would you say that to me?"

"Excuse me?"

"You don't say things like that to someone on a second date!"

"You said that I could be honest with you."

"Not that honest! You can't.. You can't.."

"I can't what?"

"You can't possibly be falling in love with me."

She's now pacing up and down the room whilst playing with her hair. She's nervous. And agitated. This certainly isn't how I wanted this night to go.

"What do you mean I can't? I can't help the way I feel about you AJ."

"Yes. Yes you can. Maybe this was all a mistake. All of it. We shouldn't be dating, we're only supposed to together on TV."

She's losing her mind. I dash over to her side to try and calm her down. Her spellbinding brown orbs are now beginning to fill with tears. How could everything have been so different just two minutes ago?

"Just calm down alright? Why are you getting so worked up over this? I thought that most girls would want to hear that from a guy they are supposed to like."

"I am not most girls! Dolph, you know that I like you but you're not supposed to feel this way about me okay, you deserve someone else. Someone better."

"Oh my god, Will you please just stop it with this little idea in your head that you are not good enough AJ!"

"But I'm not good enough! Not for you anyway. Look at all the trouble I've caused you! Before I came back into your life you were on a roll and now look, you're starting to lose more matches and you've just told me that you're falling in love with me. I'm clearly just messing things up for you."

I cup her face with my hands to make sure that she listens to what I am about to say.

"You are just overreacting babe. Trust me when I tell you that you're not messing anything up for me at all. You are more than good enough for me, in fact I'm the one who should be saying that I'm not good enough for you!"

She closes her eyes to try and get rid of the tears. It pains me to know that I'm the one who has made her become so frantic. My one weakness will always be crying women, and if there is one woman who I would want to see smile every single day, it's AJ.

"You know what, I am overreacting. But can you blame me? This is our second date and you shock the hell out of me by saying that."

"Come on AJ, whether it's our second date or not we have had feelings for each other for such a long time now."

She starts to smile. It's not really a genuine one, but more of a smile filled with distress. She takes hold of my hands and starts to play with them.

"I can't deal with this right now Dolph. I'm sorry."

She's walking away from me. Is she actually going to leave? My heart starts to race at the mere thought of her not wanting to see me again.

"You're leaving?"

"I'm really emotional right now. I think it is best if I just stay by myself for a little bit."

She really is walking out. I can feel the heartache and rage build up within me. It's time for me to be truthful not only to myself, but to her too. Zack **was **right.

"So you just freak out after the first time I tell you I'm falling in love with you? Are you serious? Well you know what AJ? I am not _falling _in love with you. **I am in love with you. **And I think I have been since the first day I saw you. But if you're just going to leave me every time things go a little crazy or just too much for you to handle, then just walk out now and we'll drop everything that we have together."

She comes to a halt just before the door. The short moment that she is frozen in her spot seems like it lasted a lifetime. She then turns around to look at me. Tears are unmistakably streaming down her face now. The sight of her so damaged breaks my heart. She briefly wipes them off from her cheeks and then hastily makes her exit out of my hotel room.

I haven't felt this destroyed in a long time. Just five minutes ago I was kissing her dainty lips and now she's gone. Maybe forever. I have just poured my heart out to the woman that I love and she has ultimately just shattered it into a million pieces. How I'm going to recover from this, I'm not sure.

* * *

**Intense chapter for you guys. Hope people enjoyed it anyway. Reviews are always welcome :).**


	14. Chapter 14

Dolph's pov

The city looks so beautiful at night. All the lights twinkling in the darkness. It's majestic. It is such a shame that I don't feel as good as how the city looks though. AJ left. I told her that I'm in love with her and she just.. left.

I've been standing at this damn window for a good twenty minutes now, waiting to see her leave the hotel. She hasn't yet. She must have gotten a room somewhere else. She'll probably be okay, maybe even a little sad over what happened between us while I'm here left completely numb. Earlier tonight I was so content with everything going on in my life. The future looked promising in terms of my wrestling career and it seemed as if me and AJ could end up being a legitimate couple outside of the business. I was on cloud nine.

My phone started to go off in my pocket and I don't think I've ever pulled it out so quick in my entire life. I instantly think that it might be AJ. She might be calling to apologise about walking out on me. She might even be calling me to tell me she loves me too. But no, it's not her. It's just Zack.

"What do you want?" Usually if I start being cruel to him I tend to feel guilty because despite everything that has happened between me and him, he is my best friend. But tonight I feel no guilt. There is just numbness within me.

"I've just got a text from Kaitlyn saying that AJ is in tears right now. I thought you two were supposed to be on a date? What happened?"

Zack Ryder everybody. He just has to know every single detail of my life. Oh, and are AJ and Kaitlyn talking now? Funny, because less than a freaking hour ago AJ didn't like the current diva's champion. I don't know whether I should be pleased or annoyed.

"You are what happened Zack. You just had to say all that crap earlier about me being in love with her didn't you?"

"What did I do wrong?"

"You know what you did! Everything that you said to me has been playing on my mind the entire time that I was with AJ tonight, so I ended up telling her that I _am_ in love with her and she freaked out on me."

"I didn't expect you to end up telling her on your second date. You're staying in the same hotel as me tonight right? Tell me which room you're in and I'll come up to talk to you face to face."

"I don't want to see anyone right now. I'm in the absolute worst mood, so coming up to my room is not the greatest idea."

"Fine, if you don't tell me which room you're in I'll find out the hard way. See you in five."

He hung up on me. You would think that if that guy was really my best friend he would respect the fact that I don't want to see anybody right now wouldn't you?

* * *

"How did you find out what room I'm in?"

"I found out from Kaitlyn who found out from AJ. Just let me in bro."

I move out of the doorway to let the spiky haired wrestler in. I'm really not in the mood for his crap tonight so I can't see the conversation between us ending well.

"Zack, just say whatever you want to say and then get out. I want to be left **alone.**"

"No, I'm not leaving you on your own man."

"Why the hell not?"

"Because you did the exact same thing two years ago. You shut everyone out for weeks and always said 'I want to be left alone.' Well this time I'm just going to ignore what you say and you're going to open up to me about all of this."

"What difference will talking to you about it make? It's not going to change what happened between me and AJ, and it's not going to change the fact that she doesn't feel the same way about me."

"You are right, it's not exactly going to change things between you and AJ but right now I'm the only person that you have that will listen to you, and if you keep things bottled up then you are just going to lose your mind."

I guess he's right. I can already feel myself going insane. Although it's not as if this is the first time I have become completely irrational over Miss Lee. She just has that effect on me. _Maybe that's exactly what happens when you are in love._

"What are you expecting me to say to you Zack? Do you want me to go into detail over how broken I am that she doesn't feel the same way?"

"You think she doesn't feel the same way? How do you know that for sure?"

Is he for real? "Well um, my first clue was the fact that she freaked out about me saying that I loved her and also how she didn't say it back to me."

"But you had just dropped that bombshell on her. She probably wasn't expecting you to say something like that and she was just shocked."

"So? Even if she was shocked she would have said it back if she did have the same feelings."

"Dolph don't be a dick okay, you didn't even realise you loved her until I pointed it out. Maybe she just needs some time to think things through and figure out how she feels about you."

"I'm not being a dick, I'm being realistic. She said that we shouldn't be dating and that everything between me and her should just be for TV."

"That could have been something that she just said in the heat of the moment."

"Even if it was, it doesn't matter anymore."

"What do you mean it doesn't matter?"

I walk over to the bar at the other side of the room to grab a couple of bottles of bud light lime.

"It doesn't matter because I'm going to move on and get over her. I can't be sat wondering when she's going to fall in love with me. Instead I should be out trying to find a decent girl who won't fuck with my mind all the time."

"Do you even hear yourself right now? You're out of your mind. You can't just move on from her when she's going to be by your side every night. Come on genius, tell me how are you going to get over her when you have to kiss her all of the time?"

"I don't know, but I'll do it."

I slump onto the couch next to where Zack is sitting and hand him the beer bottle. I don't care what he says I _should_ try and move on from AJ. She was right, she's been messing with my life for far too long. I need to find someone who doesn't cause as much drama. Someone who _will _love me. And anyway, since when did Zack want me and AJ to carry on dating? It wasn't that long ago that he was telling me I shouldn't trust her.

"Dolph, as a guy who has been in love with someone who didn't feel the same, I can tell you that it's easier said than done to just get over her. You need to just let AJ calm down for a little while and then see how she feels about all of this. To be fair, it sounds to me like she was just not expecting to hear you say that you love her."

"You're right. But why shouldn't I try and move on now? I don't know what I'm going to do if I talk to her and she definitely doesn't feel the same way. Isn't it better to try and get over her before this whole deal gets even worse?"

"Maybe, but I don't see the point in giving up something that you've wanted to happen since 2010. It doesn't make sense man."

I take a swig of the beer in my hand. The numbness in my body is slowly starting to disperse and the pain of confusion and rejection is starting to rise within me. Why is this so out of hand? If I hadn't have blurted out my stupid feelings then we would probably still be in each other's arms right now. We would both be happy. And she wouldn't be crying.

"I made her cry Zack. I made the woman I love cry, and I can't even comfort her because it's all of my damn fault."

"She's going to be fine. Kaitlyn might be with her now, so she won't be on her own."

"Hold up a sec, I thought they weren't friends? At least that's what AJ's been telling me."

"Kait told me that she wanted to talk things through with AJ so she kept calling her. When she finally got through, AJ was sobbing down the phone."

On the positive side of things, maybe AJ will get her best friend back. I must admit, that makes me a little happier.

"You know what I want? I want to go back to about 45 minutes ago and just keep my mouth shut. How much of an idiot am I to just get all deep and meaningful on a second freaking date? I can't believe I scared her away."

Zack doesn't know what to say to make me feel better. I'm kinda glad he doesn't, because I don't think much could make me feel better right now.

"I'm gonna take off and give you the space you said you wanted. But Dolph, can you do me a favour please?"

"What is it?"

"Just don't do anything stupid. Give AJ a little time and then talk to her. Then, based on what she says, you can make your next move from there."

"Since when do you get to decide what I do with my life?"

"I don't. I just care about you, that's all man. We fight all the time but at the end of the day, you are my broski."

He puts his fist out in front of him as a way of offering me a fist bump. It's a stupid gesture but the thought behind it means a lot to me. He's right, when all is said and done, Zack is like a brother to me. I return the fist bump and notice the smile creep up on Zack's face.

"Thanks for being here for me. I appreciate it."

"Of course bro, I'll talk to you tomorrow."

He smiles again and leaves the room. Looks like I'm really on my own. It's probably for the best right now. I will give AJ the space that she needs. I'll leave it for a few days and try and not beat myself up over me being such an idiot to screw our relationship up. She just needs some time. Because I love her, that's exactly what she's going to get.

* * *

**In the next chapter you will all get to hear AJ's side of things. Hope you're all enjoying the story!**


	15. Chapter 15

AJ's pov

"..**I am in love with you. **And I think I have been since the first day I saw you. But if you're just going to leave me every time things go a little crazy or just too much for you to handle, then just walk out now and we'll drop everything that we have together."

His meaningful words cause me to stop dead in my tracks. Why am I walking away from him? All I've ever wanted is for someone to care for me, to cherish me, to **love** me. Why am I reacting this way as soon as I start to get everything I've ever wanted? I turn to look at him. He's distraught. I can tell that he's trying to put on a brave face in front of me so he doesn't look weak, but I can always see how he's feeling deep down. _And I'm the one who inflicted this pain upon him. _

I can feel hot, burning tears trickle down my cheek. I have got to leave this room. The more I see how wounded he is by me not reciprocating his feelings, the more I can feel my heart breaking. I wipe the tears from my face and scurry out of the room. I start to run to the elevator and once I get there, I repeatedly press the buttons to get out of this place.

Once I get into the tiny elevator I press the button to go to the reception area. I drop the floor just completely letting go of all my emotions and breaking down. This is agony. All he did was say that he was in love with me, yet those deep and profound words made me feel as if my whole world was being turned upside down. I shouldn't react like that when such an amazing man tells me his feelings. I should be ecstatic. I should be the happiest girl in the world. But instead I flipped out and practically tore Dolph's heart from his chest and stomped on it. _You're so pathetic AJ._

My phone goes off. I can feel my hands start to shake a little more. What if it's Dolph? What if he wants me to go back up to his room? What if he wants to take back what he said? I can picture the image of his troubled face in my head. It almost feels as if someone is shooting arrows at my heart. I look at my phone and see that it's Kaitlyn ringing me for the second time tonight.

I ignore her call and make my way out of the now opened elevator doors. Again, I wipe the pain filled tears from my cheeks so that no-one can tell that I've been crying. The last thing that I need is to bump into a fan and have it all over the internet that stupid AJ Lee has been seen bawling her eyes out. My phone goes off and I can see that it's Kaitlyn again.

This time I decide to answer her. It's better get the call over and done with instead of constantly dodging her. For all I know it might be incredibly important.

"H-Hello?"

"AJ? It's about time you answered your damn phone. Look, I've been wanting to talk to you for a while now.."

"Kaitlyn, now is not the best of times for a chit chat okay?" Oh crap. I'm blubbering down the phone to her. If she can't hear my sobs then she may as well be deaf.

"Are you okay? Are you crying?"

"No I'm not.." What's the point denying it? She can clearly hear that I'm crying so why not just be honest with her? I remember what Dolph said to me. I need to stop falling out with the people who mean a lot to me and Kaitlyn certainly means a lot to me.

"AJ, you are crying. What happened?"

"I've really screwed up this time Kait." Great, now I'm full on blubbering in front of the guy at reception. If this ends up on twitter or something I swear I'm just going to crawl into a hole and never come out.

"Say no more. All of the superstars and divas are staying in the same hotel right? Come up to room 106 and we can talk about whatever is making you so upset okay?"

"Um.. okay. I'll be right up."

I'm not sure if this is the best idea seeing as me and Kait don't really talk anymore, but I could use somebody to talk to. I just wish this heartache would go away.

* * *

"Come on in AJ."

I make my way inside Kaitlyn's hotel room. It's a bit smaller than Dolph's, but then again Dolph did pay extra to get us a fancy room for our date. He wanted it to be really romantic. _And I ruined it. _I go to sit on the brown leather couch in the corner of the room, and Kaitlyn hands me a glass of water and some tissues. Even when we're not best friends anymore she's always looking after me.

She takes a seat next to me and fashions a very pity filled smile on her face. The last thing I need from anyone right now is pity. "So, are you going to explain to me why you're ruining your make-up by weeping?"

"I uh.. It's kinda awkward to talk to you about."

"Why is that? Is it because you're dating Dolph?"

She knows about us? I haven't said anything to anyone. "How do you know about that?"

"I was texting Zack just before you got up here. He told me that you and Dolph were supposed to be on your second date right now so that might be a reason as to why you're crying."

Zack knows? Dolph must have told him. But I thought they weren't exactly close anymore? Then again, he did say he spoke to him just before we left the arena. "I'm sorry if that makes things more awkward between us. It's not like it matters now though, I've messed everything up Kait."

"What happened?"

I take a deep breath. It's a lot harder than I thought to talk about what went down not so long ago. "He told me he's in love with me."

More tears falls from my eyes at the thought of his words and I glance towards Kaitlyn. She's a little bit shocked about what I said. I can't imagine what's going through her mind right now. It must feel weird to know that a guy that she was once besotted with has feelings for her best friend. Well, **ex **best friend.

"Wait a minute. I thought that was supposed to be a good thing? Why are you here crying your pretty little eyes out if he was being a nice guy?"

She's taking this way too well. I thought that maybe she would over react knowing that Dolph has feelings for me, but instead she seems worried about me. Maybe I'm just the one who over reacts. "Dolph telling me he loves me wasn't the bad part, it was me. I panicked. I went full on crazy and started saying stupid things like we should never have started dating and that I'm not good enough for him. I ended up walking out on him."

"So you overreacted?"

"Yeah. I don't even know why because I really, really, _really _like him Kait. I truly am sorry if that makes things a little weird between us but I do. I just panicked and something within me was completely traumatised over him saying those words."

She puts her arm around me for comfort as I start to sob a little more. "You wanna know what I think?"

"What do you think?"

"I think you do love him. I think that you care about him just as much as he cares about you but you were so taken aback by his words that your initial reaction was to push him away."

"Huh?"

"AJ, you do it all the time. You are so incredibly self-loathing that you think you're not good enough. I don't know whether that has come from your childhood or from bad experiences in relationships, but you carry around that feeling of no self-worth.

"Dolph said something similar."

"He knows what he's talking about then. I'd like to think that I know you better than anyone, and I have **never **seen you get this worked up over a guy before. I think that you **are** in love with him but something inside of you instinctively pushes him away when it starts to become serious."

Is she right? It makes sense, I mean the first thought that was running through my head when he said he's falling in love with me was 'Why me? Why not someone else? Can't you see how bad I am for you?'

"I think that you're right Kait. Maybe I **am **in love with him. Do you think I should go up to him? Try and sort things out?"

"No. You've just said _maybe _you're in love with him. Your mind is all messed up right now. Just take some time to try and chill out and talk to him when you are sure of your feelings."

Again, she's right. How did I survive over the past few months without talking to Kaitlyn? I'm not sure I would be okay without her tonight.

"Thank you Kait. It means a lot to me that you're here to help."

"Hey, chickbusters for life right? We're sadly not as close anymore but who knows, maybe this is the start of rebuilding our friendship."

She gestures our special chickbuster fist bump. I gladly return it but then pull her into a friendly embrace. It makes my night a little better to know that I may have my chickbuster back in my life. After the hug, Kaitlyn smiles at me and starts to walk to her bedroom.

"Hey Kait?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry for everything that's happened. And I'm also sorry that I started dating Dolph. It's not exactly a good move for me to start dating someone who you were obsessed with."

"That's okay. You can't help who you end up having feelings for. Besides, I moved on from Dolph a long time ago. I'm all about someone else right now."

Interesting. If me and Kaitlyn do rebuild our friendship, she's going to have to fill me in on who this lucky guy is. "Thanks for being so understanding."

"No problem. By the way, you can stay here tonight." She throws me a blanket and a pillow. "I figured that you don't have a room booked, so I hope my couch is comfy enough for you. Get some sleep AJ."

"Thanks again. Good night."

I try and make myself comfortable on the couch for the night. My mind instantly travels to Dolph. Am I in love with him? I don't know. I guess I just need some time away from him to discover how I truly feel. I sincerely hope that he's okay tonight. It would just kill me if I've really hurt him again.

* * *

**Interesting chapter update. Hope you all enjoyed. Another AJ point of view chapter will probably be up tomorrow. :) **


	16. Chapter 16

AJ's pov

**Tuesday 29****th**** January – 10:03 am.**

Three minutes past ten on a Tuesday morning. I managed to get more than four hours sleep last night. Personal achievement for me. Then again that might have something to do with all the crying I did. Last night still seems like a blur. It hasn't really sunk in yet. _Dolph Ziggler is in love with me._ In my wildest dreams I would have never imagined that would ever happen.

I don't have anything to do today. I had planned on asking Dolph if he wanted to spend the day with me, but obviously I don't think it would be wise if I did that now. I wonder what he's doing. Is he in a better state than what he was last night? I just don't know. I want to go talk to him. Maybe just see him for a few minutes to know if he is okay, but he probably doesn't want to see me right now. I am more than likely the last person he wants to see after practically rejecting him.

Even though I had an estimated six hours sleep last night, I was so uncomfortable. Couches are not in any way good to sleep on. I finally get up from the painful piece of furniture and make my way to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat. I notice there is a piece of paper on the counter. It says my name with a little love heart next to it. It's obviously from Kaitlyn.

_I have gone out with Layla. We have gone to the gym and then we are heading to the smackdown tapings. Text me if you need to talk x –Kaitlyn._

Layla. Kaitlyn's new 'BFF' since I've not been around. I suppose I don't blame Kait, Layla is one of the sweetest girls I've ever met. Much sweeter than me. Damn it AJ, there you go again with that stupid insecurity.

There's not much in the kitchen to eat other than some chocolate chip cookies. What the hell, I've had a rollercoaster of a night; why not treat myself to some deliciously tasting cookies? As I start to nibble on the scrumptious treats, I can't help but think of Dolph. Everything was so perfect between us. I had never been happier. Now I don't even know where we stand. Are we still dating? Does he hate me? Does he never want to see me again? Oh my god, what if he wants to end the stable with me, him and Big E?

I force myself to not get too worked up over these thoughts. For all I know, I could go over to his room right now and he would welcome me back with open arms. Wait, I _could _do that. I think Dolph's room is on the same floor as this one. His room was 110 I think. This one is 106. Crap, I didn't realise the rooms were that close together.

Should I go over to his room? There's no harm in that right? I know Kait said that I should wait to talk to him and try and work out my feelings, but I **need **to see him. I **need** that reassurance that he doesn't hate me, and I **need** to let him know that I just **need** some time to think things through.

I dash over to the small coffee table next to the couch. He hasn't tried to contact me. Maybe he doesn't want to see me. Going over to his room is a really bad idea.

God, I need to pull myself together. Why wouldn't he want to see me? He told me he loves me so he should be more than happy that I chose to come talk to him. Just grow up and get some damn courage AJ. Go over there and talk to him.

And that's exactly what I'm going to do. I quickly take a look at myself in the mirror. My eyes don't look too puffy. Great. I apply a little bit of mascara and brush through my hair. I need to look at least a tiny bit decent for Dolph.

I make my way to the door and try my hardest to calm my nerves. The thought of seeing him again actually gives me butterflies. _Maybe I do love him. _

Before turning the handle I take a deep breath. I am ready to see him.

Once I step through the door though, my eyes are immediately met with a sight that I did **not **want to see. My heart sinks. With every passing second that I see this, it gets harder to breathe. The image before me is of Dolph leaving his hotel room. With a woman. A **very** _attractive_ woman.

* * *

**Tuesday 29****th**** January – 11:17 pm.**

Disgust. Indignation. Sadness. Fear. Envy. Jealousy. Hurt.

Those are just some of the emotions that I have been feeling today. As soon as I saw the man who I'm supposed to be dating leave his room with that skinny, slutty blonde girl, I ran straight back inside my hotel room. I've been feeling like crap ever since.

What were they doing inside his room? I shudder at the slightest thought of what they could have been doing. What if he slept with her? What if he thought that I didn't have any feelings for him at all so 'Barbie doll' made him feel better? I feel physically sick.

All day I've been trying to do literally anything to keep me occupied. I've tried to watch films, I've been to the gym, I've been playing on my Nintendo ds, I've been out for some food but absolutely **nothing **can take my mind off of him and that slut.

In reality, she's probably not a slut. She might be one of the nicest girls in the world, and that hurts me the most. He might be moving on.

I get a text from Kaitlyn saying '_hope you're okay_.' Well Kait, I am not okay. I am far from okay. I stare at the home screen of my phone. On the screen there is a picture of me and Dolph from the NXT event in Kissimmee. We were so happy that day. Me and Dolph had just started to get used to each other again and I'd finally begun to earn his trust. It was a perfect day.

Tears begin to prick my eyes and then I start to feel rage build up within me. How dare he make me feel like this just because I didn't say that I loved him back!

I storm out of the door not even caring whether I look okay and bang repeatedly on his door once I reach his room. Me and him are going to have a confrontation about all this, and it is not going to be pretty. Finally after my tenth hit on the door, he opens it.

"AJ what the hell are you doing? You're going to wake people up!"

I thundered past his side, inspecting his room to hopefully find the bimbo somewhere.

"Where is she?"

"Who?"

"Don't act innocent Dolph, where's the girl who stayed here last night?"

"What are you talking about? A girl didn't stay here last night!"

"Do you think I'm stupid? I saw you two leave here this morning! So where is she?!"

He starts to chuckle. Well I'm glad my anger seems to amuse somebody. How freaking dare he?!

"You mean Elisa. My cousin. She came here this morning so we could grab some breakfast together. I hadn't seen her in three years AJ, we were just catching up."

His cousin. AJ you utter fool. "I'm sorry. I thought.. I thought."

"You thought that I slept with her. Wow AJ, is that what kind of guy you think I am?"

"No, it's just I saw you two together and I jumped to conclusions and.."

"And you just assumed that because you see me with a woman that I'm automatically sleeping with her?"

"No! It's not like that Dolph! But you have to admit it looked pretty strange.."

"I don't care how it looks like AJ, why would you think that I would tell you how I feel about you and then jump into bed with someone?"

"I'm sorry." I can't take this. He's shouting at me. Because I'm such an idiot and didn't think through all of the possibilities, we are now fighting with each other.

"You should probably just leave. **Now**."

He moves away from me and heads towards the bar. He's asking me to leave? Yesterday he didn't want me to walk out of the door and now he _wants _me to walk out on him? I can feel rage once again.

"No, I'm not leaving! This isn't fair! Dolph, we were perfectly fine yesterday until you had to tell me you love me. You could have just kept your feelings to your damn self until we were actually boyfriend and girlfriend, but no. You had to tell me yesterday on only our second date and scare me into thinking things were going too fast."

He slams his fist on the table. I've clearly struck a nerve. "You know what isn't fair AJ? Having feelings for you at all. You're such a complete mindfuck, I don't have a clue what's going on when I'm with you. You weren't the one who felt utterly broken yesterday when I had to watch you leave me."

"Do you think that I wasn't affected by all of this too? Don't you think that I've spent the past day feeling nothing but guilt and sadness? And then to make it worse I see you with another woman and instantly I think that you've found someone better!"

He angrily marches over to where I'm stood. "For god's sake, when are you going to stop with your insecurity?! Don't you get it yet, I DON'T WANT ANYONE ELSE AJ, I'M IN LOVE WITH **YOU**!"

Tears are now freely flowing down my cheeks. The tension, the frustration, the passion of the moment is too overwhelming. Without even thinking I jump into his arms and attack him with a bunch of emotion filled kisses. Maybe it has something to do with how sexy I find him when he's angry, or maybe it's hearing him say those words with such authenticity, but I have **never **needed him more in my entire life.

I can feel his body stiffen, clearly in shock that I am kissing him. _This certainly isn't the first time we have been in this situation._ He soon melts into the kiss and leans back against the wall for support.

Before the kiss starts to intensify however, he pulls away from me.

"AJ, what are you..?"

"Sssh.. I just want **you**."

He moves my hair behind my ear. He's done this so many times during the time we've spent together, but tonight that simple gesture means much more to me.

"Are you sure?"

I stare deeply into those precious blue eyes, whilst I can feel my own cloud over with lust.

"I am **more **than sure."

With my confirmation, his lips found their way back to mine and we headed off to the bedroom.

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**Hope you guys liked this chapter. :) **


	17. Chapter 17

Dolph's pov

**Wednesday 30****th**** January– 7:12 am**

If I was a smart man none of this would have happened. The day that she pushed John Cena off of that ladder I should have stayed away, or better still the day I first saw her backstage I shouldn't have gone up to introduce myself. But no, Dolph Ziggler is not a smart man. Not when it comes to the incredibly attractive spitfire known as AJ Lee.

Two days ago things were great. I'd just been on my first date with AJ and everything was pure bliss. I liked her, she liked me and everything in both of our personal lives and at work was going smoothly. But then Zack came along. Zack made me realise that I don't just like AJ. No, he made me realise that I'm completely head over heels for her. That shouldn't be a bad thing though, right?

But it is. It's all moving too quickly and now I've confused her feelings. If only I'd have kept my damn mouth shut. I was prepared to keep my distance from her and allow her some time just to think things through, but then she turned up at my door. She barged past me and then had the gall to accuse me of sleeping with some woman. Did she really think I would? First of all, that woman is my cousin so that could never happen and secondly what kind of scumbag really confesses his love for someone to then only sleep with some random chick? I may be a jerk on TV but that is not me in real life.

Now we are both here. Laid in my bed after a night of unadulterated passion. It was indescribable. And I mean that in the best possible way. I never planned on sleeping with AJ last night, but when she jumped in to my arms and practically pleaded with me that she 'wanted' me, there was no way I was turning her down.

I look over to her sleeping figure next to me. She looks so peaceful. Maybe it's just the way the morning light is reflecting upon her face, but she looks astonishingly beautiful. I don't think I've ever seen her look better. She's wearing no makeup yet her skin looks flawless. It hasn't really sunk in yet that she ever wanted to date me. Talk about her being way out of my league.

I don't want to leave her side but I know if I don't head down to the gym to do my early morning empty stomach cardio now, I'll never end up going down there. I try to leave the bed as quietly as possible so that I don't wake her up and then quickly get changed into my gym clothes.

Just before I leave my room to make my way to the gym I glance back to AJ. She's still sound asleep. I hope she doesn't think I'm ditching her. I'll send her a text later to let her know where I am.

Just as I'm walking down the corridors and am about to send a text to Miss Lee, Zack starts ringing me. I should probably accept.

"Hey Zack, what's up?"

"I've been talking with Kaitlyn and she says that AJ hasn't been answering her phone. Do you know where she is?"

"Errrm, yeah. I know where she is."

"You do? I was expecting you to say no because I thought you weren't going to talk to her for a while. Where is she?"

"She's asleep."

There's a long silence on the phone. I'm guessing Zack's piecing all the clues together. Say what you want about Zack Ryder, but he can be a pretty smart guy when he wants to be. "Did you and her.. you know."

"I have no idea what you're talking about. All I said was that she's asleep."

"Oh, and where is she sleeping right now?"

"In my bed."

"I can't believe you! You and AJ?!"

"Hey, all I said was she's asleep in my bed, I didn't say we did anything. Look, I'm on my way to the gym now so I've gotta go."

"Okay. Oh wait a sec, so are you and her okay now? No more falling out?"

I pause upon hearing his question. I don't actually know where me and AJ stand. We may have spent the night together, but we didn't really get round to talking about what's going on between us.

"I think I'll have to get back to you on that one buddy."

"Okay bro. Talk to you later."

So now that is the ultimate question. Where the hell do me and AJ stand?

* * *

**Wednesday 30****th**** January- 9:47 am**

One amazing two hour session of empty stomach cardio done. I'm feeling revitalised and ready to get this day started. I have to admit, my legs ache a little bit but anyway, I'm trudging back up to my hotel room. I wonder whether AJ will be awake?

As I open the door, my question is immediately answered as my eyes are instantly met with a frantic AJ running around my room trying to find her clothes. At the moment she's only wearing her jeans and a bra. I'm sure millions of WWE viewers would kill to see this image right now.

"Looking for something?"

Upon hearing my voice she instantaneously jumps. I guess she didn't notice that I was back.

"Oh my god, I didn't know you were here. I'm trying to find my t-shirt. Hey, where did you go anyway?"

In the corner of my eye I can see a black t-shirt with a skull design scattered all across it. I pick the cute t-shirt up and throw it to AJ. "I was just at the gym. I was going to text you to let you know where I was but I forgot."

"I wish you would have woken me up before you left, I've got a flight to catch in under an hour back to Tampa. I'm going to miss it if I don't leave soon."

So that means I don't have any time to talk with her about what's going on between us. Just perfect.

"If I'd have known I would have woken you up. Have you got everything you need?"

"Uh, yeah I think so. I just need to get my suitcase from my room and then I'll check out."

I'm not quite sure what else to say to her now. I mean, I can't go into a full blown conversation with her about where we stand can I? She's got a freaking plane to catch. She smiles awkwardly and then heads towards the door. I guess I'm just going to be left confused about everything that's happened lately for a few more days until I see her again.

"Wait, I think I have a few minutes to talk."

It's almost as if she was reading my mind. "Are you sure you have time?"

"Yeah, I can't just walk out without really saying anything to you at all."

"Okay, I suppose you can't."

"So, about last night. You don't regret it do you?"

"No. Of course I don't AJ. I was actually going to ask you the same thing."

"Well.. I don't regret it either." That crazy chick smile that I have become quite fond of makes an appearance on her face. Could I love her any more than I do now? "But Dolph, even though last night was pretty amazing, I'm still not quite sure what's going on between us. Like, are we still dating or..?"

There it is. The question that I'm not entirely sure I know the answer too. "I don't know AJ. You know how I feel about you and I do still want to date you. But I think you need some time away from me to figure out what you want."

"But I see you almost every day. Dolph, I'm going to be seeing you on Friday for the house show. You can't say that I can have time away from you, it's just not possible."

"I don't mean at work. Of course we're still going to be working together, I don't want to end things there. I mean in our personal lives. You know what, maybe we should stop dating for a while."

Judging by her reaction to my suggestion of ending things, she's not exactly cheerful at the prospect. She actually looks pretty dejected.

"So, we're not dating anymore? It's just over between us? But what about last night?"

I walk over to her and place my hands on her cheeks to try and lift the petite woman's spirits. "You're not listening to what I'm saying AJ. I do want to date you, and we will again in the future, but we need some time apart so you can just think things through okay? Come here."

I pull her into a caring embrace to make sure she's okay before she has to leave. I swear to god I don't know what I'll do if she ends up crying on me again.

"Okay Dolph. We'll cool things off for a while and then when we both know what we want, we'll start dating again. I like that idea."

"Exactly. So we'll only see each other at work and we won't text or call each other like we usually do. That will allow you enough time to think about things."

"Right." She sends a comforting smile my way and briefly touches my cheek. Before I can even say goodbye to her, she's bounding out of the room to go catch her flight.

So me and AJ are no longer dating. But it's for the best. She just needs some time and who knows? She may discover that she's in love with me too. Somehow though, I have a gut feeling that maybe we won't end up together like I'd hoped.

* * *

**Hope you all enjoyed and fingers crossed for some cute Dolph and AJ moments tonight on raw. I feel like I haven't seen them on my TV in a long time! Another chapter might be up tomorrow :)**


	18. Chapter 18

Dolph's pov

**Thursday 31****st**** January – 1:44 pm**

One of the best parts about staying at Zack's apartment is how he always has bud light lime stocked in the refrigerator. It's the one thing that I can rely on Zack always having. So yeah, that's where I've been since last night. With all this stuff happening with AJ, I didn't really want to be on my own so I figured I'd stay with Zack to try and get things fully back to normal with me and him. So far, so good. It's as if we never fell out.

Today has been pretty boring boring so far though, I must admit. Me and Zack haven't really spoken about anything interesting, and I've been avoiding the topic of the geek goddess all day. I can tell that he's been wanting to talk about her and get the latest gossip like he always does, but I've cleverly been dodging his questions.

Zack's being a little mysterious as of late though. He's a lot more cheerful and a lot less annoying. Something's definitely going on with him. As he goes to the fridge to grab another beer, I catch him smiling like an idiot at his phone. Ah, he must be texting a girl. I wonder who the poor soul is he's probably picked up from some random bar on the L.I.

"Who's the chick that's plastering a smile on your face Ryder?"

"Nobody."

That obviously means that someone is. I can see right through him. "Don't lie to me, I know you better than anyone. Who's the hoeski?"

"She's not a hoeski!"

He's being defensive. That must mean that he _really _likes her. Now I'm intrigued. "Ah so it is a chick that's got you smiling. Why won't you tell me who it is?"

"Why won't you tell me what happened with you and AJ?"

Damn it. I knew he'd pull a counter to my question. Smart move kid. "Because it's a really personal matter."

"Well this might be really personal, ever thought of that?"

"Okay, whatevs." He'll end up telling me eventually. Knowing him he'll probably use it as a bribe to get me to 'fess up about what happened with me and AJ in my hotel room. I've still refused to go into detail about the amazing experience that I shared with her.

I can see Zack shuffling around on the couch. He's clearly getting impatient for me to talk about it. He just has to know all of the info about everything. "C'mon Dolph, Kaitlyn was telling me that AJ was all over the place when she left your hotel room Monday night. Just tell me what happened the day after!"

"Why? Why do you have to know every single detail Zack? Can't some things just.. Woah. Hold up a sec. The only person you ever seem to mention lately is Kaitlyn. Oh man, she's the girl who you're texting!"

Zack's face is a picture right now. He can give so much away with just a simple facial expression. "No! I.."

"Aw Zack stop lying, you mention her all the time. You and her are an item aren't you?!"

Ha, he doesn't even bother to argue with me. I've guessed it right. Zack and Kaitlyn are together. Who'd have guessed that would happen? "Okay fine, we've been seeing each other for a while now. But we're trying to keep it a secret in case it gets leaked to the public, so don't say anything!"

"Alright, my lips are sealed. I'm happy for ya man, Kaitlyn's a great girl."

"Thanks bro. So _now _are you going to spill about you and AJ?"

I have to laugh at his persistence. "Hey, just because you told me your secret doesn't mean I'm going to tell you mine."

* * *

**Friday 1****st**** February – 12:55 am**

I wish I could sleep more. You know, I'd give anything to be able to have a good eight hours sleep like normal people but nope. I have to be one of those people that suffers with insomnia. It doesn't help that I've got a flight to catch in less than 6 hours.

Today turned out to be pretty good in the end. For the past month and a half I've spent almost every single day with AJ, so it's been quite refreshing to spend a full day with my best friend. He ended up inviting Chi and Big O round and we all had a laugh and drank some beers. Of course I had to fit my empty stomach cardio session in there somewhere. You don't look this good with just drinking bud light lime all day and not working it off.

Despite all the fun I've had, a part of me has been miserable. I feel a little lost without AJ being here. I miss her going on about comic books and trying to persuade me to play video games with her. I miss her quirkiness and the cute little giggle she does whenever I make a joke. _I just miss __**her.**_ But that's the problem I guess. I've become far too attached. That's another reason why I wanted to have a break away from dating her. I'm becoming too obsessed with being around her, and I know for a fact that can't be good for my career, or hers.

Almost as if she knows that I'm thinking about her, I can see her name flash up on my phone. What the hell AJ, I thought I said we shouldn't contact each other? I should probably ignore her. Give her the separation from me until I have to see her at the house show. That's the right thing to do. Then again, when have I ever done the right thing when it comes to AJ? I click the 'accept' button to answer her call.

"Hey. Why are you calling me this late?"

"Oh, erm.. Did I wake you? You're usually awake at this time so I thought you'd be okay to talk."

"No I'm awake, it's just I thought we weren't going to have late night phone calls anymore."

"I know. I guess I just missed you and wasn't exactly ready to give up the phone calls just yet."

I can feel my heart ache at the mention of her missing me. I'm sure she doesn't miss me half as much as I miss her though. "I uh.. I miss you too. But AJ, you're going to be seeing me later."

"I know that, it's just... I've been going crazy. Kaitlyn came over to keep me company but I don't know, it's still kind of awkward between us. Hey, you'll never guess what.."

"If you're about to tell me about Kait and Zack, I already know."

"Can you believe it? Such an unlikely couple yet, they kinda work together."

"Yeah I agree. That's what people said about me and you."

The line has gone silent. I'm guessing that I shouldn't have said that. I can hear her sigh deeply.

"I'm sorry."

That I didn't expect to hear from her. What on earth could she be sorry about? "What do you mean you're sorry?"

"I'm sorry that we have to be like this. I'm sorry that I have to be the awkward one who has to think about how I feel about you instead of just knowing instantly. I'm just really sorry Dolph. If it wasn't for me then we wouldn't have to miss each other at all."

"Don't AJ okay? Don't you dare start blaming yourself, it's just something we have to do."

"But I can't help it. I just want to be with you right now and I can't and it hurts."

It's almost as if someone shot me in the heart. It just about kills me to know that she's hurting. What the hell can I do to make her feel better when she's in Tampa? "Babe, don't be like that okay. I'll see you later at the show. But AJ, don't you think that this is part of the problem? We've become too attached to each other."

"I think we have. Are you sure that's a bad thing though?"

"I don't know."

Again, there's an awkward silence on the line. If only things were simpler than this. I don't think either of us have any clue what we're doing anymore.

"Dolph? Can I be completely honest with you?"

"Of course."

"I know I have strong feelings for you and why wouldn't I? You're amazing. I just don't want to say that I love you until I'm 100% sure. I've done that before and it ended so badly. I don't want things to end that way with you and you deserve someone to be completely honest when those words are spoken to you."

"I get it AJ. I would rather you be sure anyway. Look, don't think I'm forcing you into loving me back okay? If you don't it's okay. You should probably get some sleep. I'll talk to you later."

"Okay. " She sighs deeply again. "See you later, _Ziggy."_

I hang up the phone but continue to stare at my home screen. It's the pic of me and AJ from the NXT event in Kissimee. I think AJ has the same one on her home screen. I don't know what's going on anymore. I think we're both making things out to be a bigger deal than what they actually are. Why does she need time away from me? She can figure out her feelings whilst still dating me right? We'll see. The only thing that I'm sure of right now is that I am in love with her, and I'm not ready to give up hope that we'll end up together.

* * *

**Did anyone expect Zack and Kaitlyn to be together? Hope you enjoyed and I love reviews. *hint hint* ;)**


	19. Chapter 19

AJ's pov

**Friday 1****st**** February – 8:11 am**

I don't think I'll ever get used to airports. The amount of overly annoying people I see every time I'm at this place always winds me up. At least today I have Kaitlyn by my side. It's been about four or five months since we caught a flight together. I like to think of this is as progress in our friendship.

Speaking of the hybrid diva, she's just come back from going to pick us both up a few coffees from starbucks. I didn't even have to ask for one, but she knew that I would want one anyway. I think that's what I love most about her other than her rad sense of humour. She seems to know what I'm thinking without me ever having to say a word.

"Thank you Kait."

"No problem. I thought you might be tired because I know you didn't go to sleep until late, so you need some coffee."

"Thanks for the coffee but I didn't actually mean that. I meant thanks for staying with me yesterday. I really appreciate it."

"Don't worry about it. You were in a rough spot and you needed your best friend."

She puts her arm around me and I can feel my depressing mood start to uplift just knowing that our friendship is back on track. _Now if only Dolph and I could get back to normal. _The friendly hug between me and the two toned diva was cut short as she pulled her IPhone out to reply to yet another text message to Zack. I swear this is like the millionth text they've sent to each other.

"Gosh, do you and him _ever_ stop texting?"

"Hey, don't get snappy just because your man isn't texting you."

Ha, _my man_. I wish I could say he's my man, but nope, we're on a break from dating. "Kait, you never told me how long you and Zack have been together. So when exactly did you two start going out?"

"Not long after me and you fell out so round about the beginning of October. That's actually how we got together you know, he found me upset after our argument and things just kinda happened from there."

"Wow, you guys have been together longer than I expected. I'm happy for you both though. In some strange way, you both make perfect sense."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well, you're both quite eccentric. You're both really funny and the two of you have hated me and Dolph at some point in your lives."

"I never understood your paranoia with Zack. I asked him about it and he was adamant on the fact that he never hated you. He just never really got along with you I guess."

"Okay fine, he never hated me. But seriously though, I'm glad you have someone who makes you this happy."

She beams at my words. It is so good to know that she has someone who can put this smile on her face. "Thanks AJ. He does make me happy. I uh.. wasn't sure whether to tell you or not considering everything that is going on between you and Dolph, but I'm **totally** in love with him."

**Love**. Why the hell does everyone seem to be in love?! "In love? So this is getting serious between you two then?"

"It's starting to, yeah."

"Wow, that's great. Honestly. Erm, I don't want to sound like a complete dork but, how do you know that you're in love with him?"

She smiles at me. "I thought you might ask me something like this. AJ, I think you just _know_ when you're in love with someone."

"What?"

"Yeah, I think you just feel it you know? No over-analysing involved, you just have that gut feeling and then boom. You know that you're in love."

"No over-analysing? Kait, both you and Dolph have told me to 'think things through' so how is that going to help when you've just said no over-analysing?!"

She starts to laugh. It's always good to see someone laughing at my pain. "You're the kind of girl that needs some time to know exactly how you feel though. But listen, I don't want to sound like some sappy girl in a chick flick, but you know when you're in love when they're the only thing on your mind. Like you literally cannot stop thinking about them and no matter what they do, they seem to give you butterflies."

"You do kinda sound like a lame lovestruck chick flick girl. So is that what happened with Zack? You couldn't stop thinking about him and you knew you had fallen for him?"

"Something like that. AJ, I think that's our flight that's boarding now. Let's get a move on girl."

As me and Kaitlyn drag our bags with us so we can board the flight to Chattanooga Tennessee, her words of wisdom start to leave an effect on me. I know now exactly what I'm going to do tonight."

* * *

Friday 1st February – 11:14 pm

Another tag match where Dolph ultimately loses. It doesn't bother me too much, he was still the performer of the night, and as always he stole the show. I'm so proud to be able to stand in his corner.

The house show event here in Chattanooga is over and everyone's going home. Except for Dolph that is. No, Dolph likes to stay behind a little longer than everyone else. He always helps take down the ring and he has to have a long hot shower before leaving the arena . He doesn't know it, but I'm in his locker room waiting for him.

What Kait said to me earlier has started to sink in. Now all I've got to do is wait to talk to Dolph. We haven't really had chance to talk to each other properly. Out in the ring doesn't count because he was clearly just putting on a show. Finally he exits the shower area, surprisingly fully dressed. He must have gotten changed in there.

"Woah, AJ what are you doing here? I thought you would have left by now."

"I know, I was going to get a ride with Kaitlyn but I just wanted to see you."

"You've just seen me out there not too long ago."

He's giving me the impression he doesn't want to be around me. That doesn't feel too thrilling. "Erm, do you want to go to the nearest starbucks with me? I know there's one down the road, kinda like there was that night of the slammy awards."

"I don't think that's a good idea AJ. What about the whole 'staying away from each other' deal?"

"Forget the deal okay? I just want to talk."

"No, I'm not just going to forget the deal."

He's starting to look pretty agitated. He walks over to me and starts playing with my hair. As he starts to mess with my tangled brunette locks, I start to cherish the moment and how great it feels to be this close to him again. "Last night when you called me and told me that you were hurting because we weren't together, it made me so upset AJ. I don't **ever** want to be the reason for why you're hurting."

"You're not the reason Ziggy. Look, let's just get away from this arena and have a talk. There are some things that I want to say and I don't want to say them in a smelly locker room."

"You don't get it. As long as we're dating or doing whatever the hell this is, one of us is going to end up hurt. I want you to be happy more than anything in the world, and I'm starting to believe you can't be happy with me."

My hands start to shake. His demeanour has become so serious and rigid. My gut tells me that the rest of this conversation cannot go well. "What are you getting at Dolph? Don't you dare say what I think you're about to."

He starts to show signs of vulnerability and I know for a fact that his next words won't be good. "Last night I thought that I would do anything for you. I even thought to myself that I wouldn't give up hope that some day we'd be okay, and maybe you'd be my girlfriend. Today has been different though. Today I've had some time to really analyse everything, and I've now come to the conclusion that we shouldn't be together."

I can feel teardrops start to prick my eyes. He's really doing this. He's finally realised that I'm not good enough for him, and he's going to break my heart like every other pathetic ex-boyfriend. He promised me, he swore to me that he would be better than John Cena, but no. He's worse. This is worse. I never felt this way about John. The whole charade between me and him is a minor farce in comparison to this. I feel like I'm about to break.

"NO! You can't.. We can't. Dolph, you said, you said that we'd be together eventually. You.. You can't tell me that you're in love with me and then days later tell me that we shouldn't be together! If you don't want to see me hurt, then why do this to me?!"

"AJ please calm down. You said it yourself the other night when you were in full on panic mode that we should end things, and you were right. If we continue this thing between us.. whatever it is, it's only going to get more intense and I don't want to hurt you more than I unfortunately am doing now."

Any strong kind of exterior that I have is completely gone now. A wave of dejection and misery has suddenly hit me like a tsunami. The room feels like it's about to start closing in on me and it's getting a little harder to breathe. "Don't do this. If you care about me like you say you do, you'd take back everything you have just said."

"I'm sorry AJ, I really am. But you'll realise that this is for the best, I promise."

I can feel a major crazy chick breakdown ahead. Everything hurts right now, and all I want to do is hit him repeatedly to make him feel the pain that I'm going through. But no, I'm so small that my fists wouldn't even make him flinch. A different approach is required. He's going to find out the real reason why I came to see him tonight. I try my hardest to put on a tough front and get my words in order.

"Not that it matters now, but you should probably know what I wanted to talk to you about." I take tiny step forward so we're barely a few inches apart. The royal blue of Dolph's eyes are burning a hole through my heart, but right now I need to get my act together and say my piece.

"I came here because I wanted to tell you that after talking with Kaitlyn today, she made me realise something. Something that I should have realised Monday night in your hotel room. **I am in love with you Dolph**. I'm stupid to have not known my true feelings sooner, but I know now. I wanted to take you to a starbucks that was similar to where we started our crazy deal to become the next power couple. I was ready to let you know that I want to **date** you, to be in a **relationship** with you, to **marry** you, to have **kids** with you and then tell our **grandkids** about everything we've been through together. I wanted to tell you that I have never felt this way about anyone in my life. But now you tell me that you don't want to be with me. **Well, screw you Dolph**. Screw you for messing with my mind and screw you for putting me through this pain. What I'm going to do now is walk out of this arena and leave you behind. But I want **you **to remember this moment. I want **you** to remember the moment where the girl **you** claim to love tells **you** she loves **you **back and then leaves. I want **you** to remember that **you** are the reason why she left. So screw **you** for making me fall in love with **you**."

I tear my eyes away from his and run out of the room. My heart is in my mouth and now that I'm away from him the tears are flowing freely. I have to get out of here before someone sees me. I have to get out of here before I crumble into a heartbroken pile of rubble. Tonight may be one of the worst nights of my life.

* * *

**Intense stuff. I'll try to get another AJ pov chapter up tomorrow. I'm thinking of ending the story soon because I have an ending in mind, but I also have a few more storyline ideas in my head, so I would seriously appreciate it if some of you lovely readers could leave some reviews just to let me know whether you want me to continue or not. Hope you enjoyed this chapter anyway!**


	20. Chapter 20

AJ's pov

**Friday 8****th**** February 2013 – 4:31 pm**

107 missed calls. 17 text messages. 11 voicemails. All of them from Dolph.

Since mine and Dolph's 'confrontation' last Friday, I've been quite distant from everyone. It's not the first time I've had my heart broken and decided to hide away from the world, but it's a little different under these circumstances. After I ran out of the arena and got a taxi to the local airport, I turned off my phone, I caught a flight and as soon as I arrived back at my Tampa home I spent the entire night sobbing.

I think what hurt the most is that everything felt so surreal. That whole week was a nightmare. I still can't wrap my head around how on the Monday I was the happiest I've ever been and then skip to Friday I became the most miserable woman on the planet. But for what? Is it because I was a confused little girl who didn't realise her feelings sooner? Is it because Dolph caught me off guard and freaked the hell out of me by becoming the first man to ever tell me he loves me and mean it? Is it because we are both total lovestruck idiots who can't seem to make up our minds whether we should be together or not? The fact of the matter is those reasons should not cause me this much pain.

But yeah, ever since I ran out on him last Friday, Dolph has been constantly trying to contact me. As I sit here alone on my couch I decide to play some of the voicemails he left me.

_"AJ it's me. Where are you? I've tried calling you like a thousand times, I've been to all the nearby hotels to see if you've checked in, I went to see if you're at the airport and you're nowhere to be found. Can you please just turn your phone on and let me know if you're okay." _That's the first one. He sent that a few hours after I left him. Talk about confusing, first he doesn't want to be around me and then he just _has_ to know that I'm okay. Hypocrite.

"_I have no clue where you are right now but I'm worried because even Kaitlyn doesn't know where you are either. Please call me back AJ. I want you to know that I'm so sorry for what happened tonight." _The second. The voicemails start to get even more depressing.

"_I know you probably hate me right now AJ but for God's sake just call me back. It's 3am and I'm not going to be able to sleep until I at least know that you're safe. Just send me a text, a tweet or anything. Please." _ Didn't he understand that I was avoiding him? The rest of them are pretty much the same, all apart from the last one. The last one actually managed to pull on my heart strings so much that I decided to reply to him. This one was also sent on Monday when we were supposed to be on raw but got cut from the show because I didn't turn up.

"_I'm sorry about everything AJ. I'm going out of my mind not knowing if you're okay. Just know that despite what I last said to you, I do love you. I really wish things didn't have to be this way. Again, I'm sorry."_

Upon listening to that message again, I can feel my eyes start to well up. His words were drenched with such sincerity, how could I not let him know that I'm okay? Of course, I didn't tell him that I'd been crying for three straight days, but I did manage to get the point across that I'm alive and didn't get attacked by a madman while I was in such a vulnerable state.

So the question now is, where do we go from here? Normally if I've ever been hurt by a guy (which has happened a few times) I would avoid them like the plague, hence why I've been cooped up in my home for a week. But I can't avoid Dolph. The only way that I could ever avoid that man is if I gave up my dream job and there's no way in hell that I'm doing that. I have to see him all of the time. Hell, I even have to kiss him every time we're out in front of a crowd. This is why I should never date co-workers.

To shake me from my depressive thoughts, my Chihuahua Nacho starts to bark. Nine times out of ten, that usually means someone will be knocking at my door any minute. It's a good job I haven't cried much today. Don't want some random person to see my eyes looking puffy. Right on cue, the doorbell rings. If it's the postman knocking to ask for yet another autograph for his kids, I may go full on crazy chick on his ass.

I open the door and I swear my heart skips a beat. It's only the resident show off of the WWE and also the man who continues to toy with my emotions. As if it's a natural reaction, I try and slam the door in his face before he can even say hi, but he puts his foot in the way.

"AJ, don't be like that. Let me in, please."

Let him in? LET HIM IN?! Why should I let this man into my home? Does he think I'm some damn stupid fool? "Give me one good reason why I should Dolph."

"Because you've been ignoring me all week apart from sending a text saying 'I'm fine, leave me alone' so just let me in so we can talk."

"You were supposed to get the hint from that text. What is there to talk about Dolph? YOU are the one that said no talking for a while and as I recall, you then said we shouldn't be together at all so please indulge me on why you're on my doorstep right now."

"I'm not having this conversation with you out here, please just let me in."

All I want right now is for him to leave. I'm proud of myself for putting on such a strong exterior in front of him, but inside I'm slowly breaking. Seeing him after one long hellacious week is causing butterflies to appear in my stomach. _Why must he have to look so good all the time? _I can almost hear my heart break a little bit more. If I do let him in now though, he might leave sooner.

"Fine." I step aside and allow him to move past me. As he brushes past my side I catch a whiff of his scent. Gosh, I've missed the way he smells. I can't quite describe what it smells like but all I know is that it's irresistible. I make my way over to him after closing the door and find that he's made himself comfortable on the couch where I was just sitting. Oh sure Dolph, just make yourself at freaking home.

"You want to talk Dolph, then talk. Say your piece and then please leave."

"Will you come sit next to me?"

"Sure." I go to sit on the couch next to him but make sure I'm sat as far away from him on the opposite side of the brown piece of furniture.

"Okay, I'm not really sure where to start. I uh.. guess I'll start off with saying I'm so unbelievably sorry AJ."

"I heard the voicemails. I know you're sorry. Doesn't change the fact that you hurt me Dolph. How could you go from saying 'Oh AJ, we'll start dating again after a little break' to 'I don't think we should ever date again'? And you're the one who called ME a mindfuck. Dolph if anyone is a mindfuck, it's you!"

I can see him register everything I say and then he starts to chuckle. This is no laughing matter bleach boy! "Why are you laughing?"

"I'm not used to hearing you swear. And, I've missed you. It's good to see that you're still as passionate as ever, even after all this crap that's happened between us."

"Don't change the subject Dolph."

"Why not?" He shuffles closer to me on the couch. I can feel my stomach do somersaults. "AJ, we have both been so stupid. C'mon, look back on where all this madness started. It started just because I told you that I'm in love with you, and you freaked out. All I wanted was to be honest about my feelings for you, and if I'd have known it would have ended up with you hating me, I wouldn't have said it at all. I know what I said last Friday and I meant it. But being without you for a full week and the last thing you said to me was that _you _are in love with me, I realised that I can't be without you."

No. This isn't happening. He can't just change everything like that. When will this emotional rollercoaster end? "Stop it. Stop it now." I get up and start to pace up and down. "What gives you the right to just waltz in here and say all of this to me?" Dolph gets up to stand in my way and then grabs my hands firmly so I can't pull away from him.

"You said you loved me AJ. You know that I'm in love with you so why don't we just forget all the crap and be together. I know that's what we both want."

"You can't just play on my emotions like that. We can't just take back all the bad stuff that's happened okay, it's always going to be there as a painful reminder that we can't seem to make our minds up about this."

"No you're right. We can't take it back but instead of thinking of it as a reminder of how confused we can both get, why not remember it as the week we discovered our feelings for each other and use it to remind us of how much we both want to be together."

"I.. I don't.."

"AJ listen to me. If you don't care about me or if you don't want to be with me in any way at all, then I'll walk out of the door and leave you alone like you claim that you want me to. But I know that you do want to be with me deep down so how about we stop being morons and just be together."

"But what if it doesn't work out, we'll end up worse than we have been for the past week."

"In every relationship there's always going to be excuses or reasons for why two people shouldn't be together but if you love each other enough, it will work out."

"I don't know, I'm so confused right now.."

Just as I'm about to argue my case, Dolph puts his hands on my face and pulls me in to a kiss. The instant shock and confusion of his rash move starts to disappear as I melt into this tender moment. It feels like it's been a lifetime since I kissed him. If only every moment could be this perfect. He breaks the kiss but still keeps his head close to mine. As I open my eyes I can feel his beautiful blue orbs burn into my brown ones. How could I not have realised that I was head over heels in love with him sooner?

"AJ, I'm in love with you okay? Will you_ please_ be my girlfriend in real life as well as on TV?"

I can feel my life flash before my eyes. I can picture the moment when I was a little girl and I saw my mom and dad say they love each other. I remember thinking in that moment how amazing it would be to be that in love with someone. It's all I've ever wanted. And now, I have it.

"Yes. I will be your girlfriend Ziggy."

His smile grows a mile wide and he scoops me off my feet into his muscular arms. "I love you so much babe. I'm going to treat you like the most amazing girl in the world, just like you deserve."

I wrap my arms around his neck and place a soft kiss on his cheek. Now is the time to put all the bad stuff behind us and focus on the future. Together.

He starts to walk to my bedroom and I can sense where this is going. "Hey hold on a sec. What are you even doing here, aren't you supposed to be performing at a house show tonight?"

"No babe, they said that because you called in sick today that I didn't have to come in. I've worked every single show possible anyway, I'm allowed one day off. Instead of being there, I'm going to show my new gorgeous girlfriend exactly how much she means to me."

And in such a short amount of time, my world has been turned from completely miserable to insanely wonderful. All thanks to Dolph.

* * *

**I decided to finally put them together. I know many of you wanted it to happen. Just in case anyone was wondering, this isn't the final chapter. I have a few more ideas in mind that someone has urged me to continue with. :P **


	21. Chapter 21

Dolph's pov

**Monday 11****th**** February – 8:35am**

_'#WWENashville headed to 104.5 to steal the show & your girlfriend (trust me WWEAJLee they mean nothing to me, babe)'_

Twitter. I never thought I'd become so obsessed with that website but I clearly have done. It's good though y'know, because when I was a kid I constantly kept wondering what my favourite wrestlers were doing at this moment but I never got to find out. If I put a tweet just like the one I put a few seconds ago, my fans can feel like they have an insight into my life. It's an awesome thing.

I can't tell the fans _every _single detail about what's going on though. I can't let them know that I'm sat in the back of an SUV with AJ snuggled up to my side. We're supposed to be just an on screen couple, I don't even want to know what people would say or do if they knew we are now together in real life. I get tweets every single day from 'shippers' or whatever they're called going absolutely mad just because I mention AJ in a tweet. Man, what would they do if they knew me and AJ spent the entire weekend together as a newly loved up couple?

Speaking of this past weekend, I can honestly say I haven't been much happier in my life. It feels good to finally be in a couple with AJ. There's no more messing around, no more confusion about how we feel, but now we're together and I'm cherishing every moment I get to be by her side.

"You were so funny in there Ziggy."

"What do you mean in there? Aren't I funny all of the time babe?"

"Of course you are, I just mean the way that you were talking to those interviewers. I tried my hardest not to laugh because they didn't have a clue about what we do or how our relationship works on TV. "

She's got a point. We just had an interview with some guys at 102.5 radio station and they were asking us a bunch of questions about what we do, but you could tell they don't really watch the show and didn't get what we were talking about. Me and AJ both instinctively decided to play around with them a bit. It was a pretty good interview if I'm honest.

"You know what bit was my favourite? How you got so defensive when that guy said I was good looking."

"Well no-one hits on my man! You're mine and no-one elses, got it?"

I laugh at her adorability. She's now looking up at me with those cute doe eyes of hers. I know I'm in for trouble in this relationship with her, as she could probably get me to do anything just with one glance of those irresistible eyes.

"I got it babe. You do realise that he was just complimenting me and didn't actually want to steal me away from you, right?"

"I know, I'm not stupid. I just don't want to take any chances alright?"

She seductively winks and me and then leans up to leave a kiss on my lips. I will never get tired of kissing her. The way she smells of vanilla and the strawberry tasting gloss that she always wears never fails to make me feel good.

"So what's the plan then? Go to the next radio station, get some lunch, do the signing and then off to raw?"

"Yep, that's the plan. Hey Dolph, you don't mind doing this stuff with me do you? I know you said you enjoy being in this thing with me and Langston, but sometimes like in that interview just now when you talked about being in that main event spot, I think that maybe you'd prefer to be on your own."

"Babe, did you not hear what else I said in there? I also said that we're going to become a strong force over the next few months _and_ years which means I love having you and E by my side. I'm going to be in that main event spot where Cena is at the moment AJ, but I still want you with me when I'm there."

"You don't have to say that you know, I'm sure I'll still be your girlfriend off screen when it happens, but if you don't want me to I don't have to still be your manager by that time."

I can tell that the insecurity within her is what's behind these questions. To try and get my point across that I don't want her going anywhere anytime soon, I put my hand on the back of her neck and draw her in for a kiss again, but this time for longer and much more delicately.

"Accept the fact that you're stuck with me for a long time AJ, and I'm not getting rid of you."

* * *

**Monday 11****th**** February – 6:24 pm**

One full day of interviews and signings done. The turnout for the signings was pretty darn impressive. Maybe it's because I have AJ by my side now, but we always seem to have hundreds, maybe even thousands of people turn up just to see us. It feels good to be a part of the hottest couple in WWE.

Now it's time to go and annoy Zack. I don't think he knows that me and AJ are an item now. I'm sure if I tell him, he'll be shocked or at least happy about it. I see him texting on his phone in catering. He's probably texting Kaitlyn sappy lovesick messages as per usual.

"Hey kid. Can't you stop texting Kaitlyn for like 5 seconds? No wonder you're hardly ever on raw."

"Shut up man. I'm not texting her, I'm trying to figure out what to get her for Valentine's day."

"Valentine's day?" I completely forgot about that lame holiday. I honestly don't see the point in the tradition. A man should treat his woman amazing 365 days a year, not just on one day. But what if AJ _does_ like the tradition? What if she's expecting a gift? Crap. "Is it on the 14th?"

"Yeah. I haven't got a clue on what to get her. She says she doesn't want anything but what kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't get her something? What are you getting AJ?"

"You know about me and AJ?"

"Did you think she didn't call Kaitlyn up to tell her every single detail about what happened between you guys on Friday?"

"Wow, I guess I didn't think about that."

"Yeah well, congrats are in order bro. It took you way longer than it should have done to finally get together. Now, back to Valentine's day. Any suggestions?"

"I've got no idea Zack. Jewellery maybe? Kait has an obsession with moustaches so why not try something in that area. Looks like I'm going to have to find something for AJ now."

"Oh yeah, I forgot that you don't really like Valentine's day. I'm sure if you explain that to AJ she'll understand and you won't have to get her anything."

"And when she sees that you've got Kaitlyn something, don't you think she'll get a little jealous? No, I can't end up looking like the worst boyfriend in the world when we've just started going out."

"What are you going to get her then bro?"

As Zack asks me what I'm going to get AJ, every noise seems to drown out as she walks into the room. She's changed from her simple vest top and blue jeans into something way more sexier. She's wearing a red cut-off shirt that displays her glorious abs that she's oh so proud of and these black jeans with white skulls down the side. I've never seen such a devilish outfit look so damn good. In comparison to all of the women I have dated in the past, AJ is nothing like them. She is much more geekier, much more funnier, much more intelligent and in my eyes, she's so much more naturally beautiful than all of them combined. I can safely say that I am so in love with this woman.

"I'm not sure man, I'll get back to you on that one."

I make my way over to the buffet table where AJ is currently standing next to and wrap my arms around her slender waist. Her vanilla fragrance instantly intoxicates me. I feel the need to reiterate, I am definitely in love with this woman.

"Ziggy what are you doing? We're in the middle of a crowded room!"

"People watch us make out every single week on national television, I don't think me putting my arms around your body is going to look weird babe."

"I know that, but no-one really knows that we're together legitimately yet."

"Kaitlyn and Zack know."

She removes my arms from around her and turns to face me. "They know about us because they are our best friends. Speaking of, me and Kaitlyn were just talking and we've decided to go out on a double date Thursday night."

"Thursday? But that's Valentine's day."

"You're right genius. That's why we're going on a double date."

So this means that AJ does in fact celebrate Valentine's day? Time to make me look like a good boyfriend. "But babe, I wanted it to just be me and you. I wanted to treat you like the princess that you are."

"Since when did you become so cheesy? C'mon babe, we'll just go out for a meal with them and then I promise we'll have some alone time, okay?"

"Okay." She quickly leans up and leaves a kiss on my cheek. "We have to film a segment with Booker and Teddy in a little bit, so I'll meet you near your locker room in about 20 minutes. I've just gotta go give this food to Kaitlyn."

After saying that, she dashed off with a plate of food. I think I'll go find Big E to let him know what we're doing tonight.

What do I get AJ for Valentine's day? What the hell do I give to the most amazing woman I know? Okay, think Dolph. What does AJ love? She loves comic books. She loves video games. She loves wrestling. And she loves comedies just like me. Maybe I should get her a combination of all those four things.

"Hello Dolph. Long time no see."

I freeze. I know that voice anywhere and it's certainly not a voice that I want to hear.

_Nikki._

* * *

**Thanks for the reviews! I adore reading them. :) **


	22. Chapter 22

Dolph's pov

**Monday 11****th**** February 2013 – 11:57pm**

I'm not on the card for Elimination Chamber. I am the best wrestler in this damn company, and I'm not on the card. Not only am I the best wrestler, but I'm Mr money in the bank. How could those idiots in creative not put me in a spot? There's only two things that I can hope for now and that is that either I get placed in an impromptu match or I get the chance to cash in. If I was going to be cashing in on Sunday though, I'd at least think they would hint that possibility, but they haven't.

I'm allowed to be this frustrated right? A few months ago I was headlining TLC with the franchise of the company and two pay per views later, I'm not considered good enough to be in a match. It just makes me wonder why I work my ass off every single night for nothing. Some people have been saying that the reason why I'm not getting far at the moment is because I'm with AJ and E. That's the biggest load of crap I've ever heard. Just because I walk to the ring with two people does not in any way mean that I should get treated with such disrespect.

Speaking of AJ, here she is now. She's walking out of the bathroom after getting changed into her PJ's. She's wearing a Pikachu top and some little black shorts. She looks as adorable as ever. I love how just her presence alone can uplift my mood. She smiles at me and then climbs into bed by my side.

"Hey Ziggy, do you have any of those jellybeans left in your briefcase? I fancy a little late night snack."

"Of course I do." I lean over to get my briefcase which is on the floor next to me and pull out a huge packet of jellybeans. I hand them over to AJ and see her face light up.

"Thank you." AJ starts to munch on the multi-coloured sweets and then starts to stare at me.

"Babe, why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm kinda worried about you."

"Why on earth would you be worried about me?"

"I'm your girlfriend, it is my job to worry you know. After what happened tonight in your match with Kane, I just want to make sure that you're okay and also that you're not mad at me."

"How could I be mad at you for what happened? You got up on the apron to try and help me in my match. It didn't work out but that's okay. Besides, you're the one who should be mad at me for knocking you off. I'm so sorry about that."

"That doesn't bother me. It happens. You were focusing on your match and didn't realise that you would knock me off. It's not like I was hurt or anything."

"You could have been hurt if E wasn't there. I don't know what I would have done if I'd have hurt you."

She stops chewing on the jellybeans. I think she can notice how low I am just remembering how I knocked her off the apron. She snuggles in closer to me and starts to run her fingers through my hair. She does this so often now, that it has become something that can calm me down in any situation. I just love her for doing that.

"You're right, it was lucky that E was there and that's exactly why we have him, right? He's there to protect us. Mistakes happen but no matter what we're still going to be together like this afterwards and that's all that matters. But anyway, that's not the only reason why I'm worried about you."

"What's the other reason?"

"You've been in this aggravated mood ever since I met up with you to go film that segment with Teddy and Booker. What's got you this way Ziggy?"

**Earlier that night..**

_"Nikki? What do you want?"_

_I take a moment to study the way she looks. She looks so different since the last time I saw her. Then again, it has been almost a year. She's still wearing a lot of make-up and is wearing an obviously expensive dress. She's still as materialistic as ever. But maybe the only thing that makes her looks different to me now is how I don't feel anything for her anymore. I don't even find her overly attractive like I used too. I'm not too sure why I liked her, never mind why I fell in love with her._

_"I just wanted to say hi. It's been a long time since we spoke Dolph."_

_"I'm pretty sure that you didn't just come here to say hi so how about you be a little more honest, or is that not in your nature."_

_"Wow, you've gotten more aggressive since the last time I saw you. I like it. I'm actually here to support my boyfriend. I think you know him, he goes by the name of John Cena."_

_I can see that smug little grin on her face. Is she really trying to make me jealous? It's not gonna work Nikki, I have someone a thousand times better than you. "Oh yeah John Cena, I think I know who that guy is. Poor guy doesn't know what horror he let himself in for."_

_She starts to laugh at what I say. She probably thinks it is sarcasm, but it isn't. I genuinely feel sorry that Cena is stuck with my ex- girlfriend and that he gave up AJ for her. But I also thank him because it means that I get the better woman._

_"Oh Dolph, I always loved having this kind of banter with you. I actually miss it."_

_"That makes one of us."_

_"So you don't miss me? Because the last time we crossed paths you were telling me how much you cared about me and how you wanted me back." As she's spewing this utter crap, she gradually steps closer to me until she's not that far away from my body. "Are you really going to tell me that all of those strong feelings that you had are completely gone now?"_

_"That's exactly what I'm going to tell you. I feel nothing for you now Nikki. I have someone else who makes me so much happier than you ever did."_

_"Who? AJ?" Again she laughs. I can feel my blood start to boil. If she begins to insult my girlfriend I will not be held responsible for my actions against this witch. "I always pegged you as a guy who was into real women, not a child like her."_

_"That's so original Nik. I'm truly laughing on the inside. Why don't you go spout your BS to someone who gives a shit."_

_"You're so grouchy. Maybe if AJ was satisfying you as your girlfriend you wouldn't be this way. See you later Dolph."_

_As she says see you later, she places her hand on my arm and then walks away. I hate her. I legitimately hate her guts. I watch her walk away and I honestly just want to storm over there and hurt her. Of course, I can't do that because I don't have it in me to hurt a woman, even if she is the devil in human form._

_"Dolph?Are.. you ready to go?"_

_It's Big E. Crap, what if he saw me and Nikki talking and got the wrong idea? He probably didn't Dolph, so don't get too worked up. I need to try and calm down from my encounter with her and act like I'm doing okay._

_"Yeah, I'm ready E. Let's go."_

"It's nothing babe. I just ran into someone I used to know and ended up getting a little riled up. It's honestly nothing for you to worry about."

I can see that she's wary about my reasoning behind being so frustrated tonight. I know I could easily tell her about my encounter with Nikki earlier, but I don't want AJ to be concerned with that. Given AJ's insecurities, I know that she'll be over analysing why she bothered to speak to me, and I just want to see my girl happy and stress free.

"Okay, if you're sure there's nothing to be worried about then I'll stop."

"Thanks babe. So anyway, let's change the subject to something a little bit more cheerful. What's the deal with this double date on Thursday?"

"I was talking with Kaitlyn and she mentioned going out one night on a double date. We both said we didn't have any plans for Valentine's day and we all have days off on that day, so it seemed perfect."

"Okay. Well I'm up for a night out as two couples, but can I ask you something? Do you actually like the concept of Valentine's day?"

"Oh god no! I've never liked it, but seeing as we're in a new relationship I will not object to spending a romantic day with you."

Isn't she perfect? Nikki and every other person can say whatever they want about AJ, but I can't think of anything bad about her. Every single quality that she holds amazes me, even the ones that tend to wind me up every now and again. I've never been one to believe in fate or anything like that, but it's as if that's how we got together.

"You're amazing. Have I told you that lately?"

She nervously giggles at my compliment. I find it so cute that after everything we've been through, she still gets nervous around me. "I believe you've said something to that effect lately. I always love hearing you say it though."

"As long as we're together babe, I'm going to tell you how amazing you are every day."

"I love you."

**_I love you_**_. _Never in my life will I get tired of hearing those words cross AJ's lips. I put my arms around her delicately small frame and kiss her forehead.

"I love you too AJ."

* * *

**Another chapter up tomorrow! (hopefully.) :)**


	23. Chapter 23

AJ's pov

**Thursday 14****th**** February – 7:21 pm**

Valentine's day. I've never celebrated the tradition as I have always firmly believed that you should show love and affection to your loved one every single day of the year. No excuses. But then again, I don't think I've ever been in a relationship on Valentine's day. If I have then I have never been with someone who I cared enough about that I would actually want to buy gifts for. Now I have Dolph, and I want to spend the most romantic day of the year with him and make sure that he knows I am so completely in love with him.

There's just one problem. I can't seem to get what Big E said to me the other night out of my head.

**Flashback – Tuesday 12****th**** February – 11:20 pm**

_"AJ, I'm off for the night. I'll be seeing you Friday."_

_"Hold on a second E. Can I just talk to you for a minute?"_

_"Sure, what's up?"_

_I walk over to the doorway where E is standing. I need to know if he's okay with everything concerning our little faction. He wanted a way to debut on the main roster and I got him one, but I can't imagine that he will want to be the 'bodyguard' for me and Dolph for too long._

_"I just wanted to talk to you about our little group. Are you enjoying being with me and Dolph?"_

_"Of course I am AJ. Us three have a blast together. I mean, I've only known Dolph for a few months now and I think he's a great guy. I've known you for a few years so I knew that we'd have fun together out there."_

_"That makes me so happy to hear E. I'm glad that you've warmed to him in such a small amount of time. He really is a great guy." I can't help but smile just at the thought of my amazing boyfriend. Normally I'm not like a lovesick puppy despite how I may appear on cameras, but when I think of him I just can't help it._

_"Uhh, speaking of your man, did he tell you why he seemed so frustrated last night?"_

_"Well I'd imagine it would have something to do with his losing streak as of late, but he mentioned running into someone he used to know and getting wound up. I didn't bother to pressure him into going into further detail. Why, do you know something?"_

_"I think I know why, but I don't want to cause trouble or anything."_

_"No E, you've got to tell me now. You can't just say that and then not say anything. Is there something I should be worried about?"_

_"I don't know if you should be worried because I don't know exactly what they were talking about, but the person he was talking to before we came to meet you was Nikki Bella. I'm guessing that's the person who put him in a bad mood all night."_

**_Nikki Bella._**_ The only woman other than me who Dolph has ever been in love with. The woman who stole John from me. The woman who whenever we had to work alongside each other when she was a part of the company, gave off the vibe that she hated my guts. Why on earth was she talking to my boyfriend?_

_"He was talking to Nikki? Are you sure?"_

_"Yeah I'm sure. I didn't listen into any of their conversation or anything, but they were standing pretty close and once she left that's when he seemed to be wound up."_

_Why? Why would she be talking to him? Doesn't she have her own damn man to talk to? She shouldn't be within ten feet of Dolph after what she did to him. Rage is building inside of me. I hate her. I hate her more than any other person on the planet. What I would give to introduce her to the 'slapped by AJ' club. _

_"It might be nothing though right? Just because they were talking doesn't mean anything was going on with them."_

_"I never said anything was going on with them AJ. All I know is they were talking. That's it. I just thought you might wanna know seeing as I know that those two have history with each other."_

_"Er.. yeah. Thanks E for telling me. I've gotta go meet Kaitlyn, so I'll see you later."_

_I grab my bag and rush past Langston. I have got to calm down. Thank god I'm riding with Kaitlyn tonight and not Dolph. I need my space away from him right now so I don't end up arguing with him. I'm totally overreacting aren't I?_

_This is what I do all the time. I overreact about something I know nothing about and jump to conclusions. That's exactly why I almost lost Dolph forever and I am not losing him again just because he was talking to that harlot. _

_It's probably nothing. For all I know he was telling her that he never wants to speak to her again and that he hates her. Yeah, that sounds more likely than the horrible image in my head of them somehow getting back together. The thing is though.. Why wouldn't he tell me about it?_

And that same thought has been going through my head for two days. I haven't spoken to Dolph about it, but it's definitely been playing on my mind. Why wouldn't he tell me he spoke to her? Did he assume I'd overreact much like how I did? Did he not want me to worry about him? Or is there something going on with those two?

Damn it AJ, stop thinking about it! He was talking to the woman, it's not like he was making out with her! I almost throw up in my mouth just thinking about the two of them kissing. I guess the reasons for why I'm so paranoid are how he was really in love with her, and it also isn't the first time she has stolen someone away from me. I'm just scared that if this is the first time they've spoken since they were last together, his feelings for her could come flooding back. Why oh why do I do this to myself?

Just as I'm about to have a mental break down after over analysing every detail of something that's probably so minor, Dolph enters the room. He's dressed up in a black suit with a light blue shirt. He's not dressed much differently than what he normally wears in the day, but still he looks incredibly handsome. I still can't believe we're together. _Well, if something is going on with him and Nikki we might not be together for much longer. _

"Babe, you look gorgeous. Are you ready to go?" I glow at his compliment. I haven't put too much effort into the way I look tonight though considering that we're going on a double date for Valentine's day. I'm wearing a short plain black mini dress with my infamous knee high converse. I'm not wearing much makeup and my hair is only slightly curled. But the fact that he still calls me gorgeous makes me feel all gooey inside. It almost makes me forget about him talking to Nikki.

"Yeah I'm ready to go. I think Zack and Kait are there already."

"We'd better get a move on then."

I think about asking him about the whole Nikki thing before we leave. It's probably not a good idea though. What if he ends up telling me something I don't want to hear or what if we end up in an argument? I don't want to ruin my first Valentine's day with the first person I've truly been in love with. Wait, why am I being so negative about things?

Dolph extends his hand out to me. I dash over to go accept his gesture and just as we're about to walk through the door he stops and pulls me into a kiss. When Dolph says that wrestling is like the fifth best thing he does, I'm guessing that kissing is in that other top 4. He's such a spectacular kisser, he could make any girl go weak in the knees with one tiny liplock. He breaks the kiss but still leans in close to me.

"You really do look stunning tonight AJ, although I'm not saying that you don't every single night. Happy Valentine's day babe."

"Happy Valentine's day to you too Ziggy. Just so you know, I've got you a little present but you're not allowed to open it until we get back from this date."

"That's ironic because I have a few presents for you too."

"A _few _presents? I thought we didn't like Valentine's day that much so we weren't going to go over the top?"

"I know babe, but they're perfect for you so I don't care. Let's get this meal over and done with so we can come back here and have a real Valentine's date."

* * *

**Friday 14****th**** February – 8:10 pm**

"Hey, you guys finally made it! We've been sat waiting for you for over half an hour!"

As me and Dolph join Zack and Kaitlyn at a table, I notice how fancy the restaurant is. There's chandeliers hanging down from the ceiling, there's expensive silver on the tables and all of the entire establishment is themed with love hearts. The funny thing is, Zack picked out where the date would take place tonight. I didn't really think he would pick somewhere like this.

"I'm sorry Zack, we got caught in traffic. We tried to make it here as fast as we could."

"Yeah yeah, sure you did Dolph. I'm guessing the two of you were too busy canoodling to get here on time."

Both Dolph and I blush at Zack's brash words. I feel the need to defend the both of us.

"We were doing nothing of the kind! Hey, we're in Long Island right now, you know what the traffic is like here."

"Okay, I'll let you off then."

As I pick up the menu to decide what I will have to eat, there is a sense of awkwardness amongst us. No-one seems to be talking which is weird because back in the NXT days when the four of us went out a few times, we couldn't shut up. Maybe it's because this is a double date that makes it so weird.

I look up from the menu at Kaitlyn who seems to be sharing my thoughts on this situation. She nods at me and decides to make conversation.

"So Dolph, I've never really talked to you about this, but what's it like to have the briefcase?"

"It's pretty great. I like knowing that I have an opportunity to become the next champ on any given night."

"But Dolph's jobbing almost as much as me now. It's not really championship material is it bro?"

Of course Zack had to butt in when the conversation was actually going somewhere. This is either going to be a great night, or a long and depressing one.

* * *

**Thanks for the reviews everyone! I wanted to update this chapter last night but I was really busy and only managed to write a few paragraphs in my spare time. Hope you enjoyed reading & hopefully I'll get another chapter up tonight or tomorrow!**


	24. Chapter 24

AJ's pov

**Thursday 14****th**** February – 9:16 pm**

"Well thanks guys for coming out with us, we had a really great time."

"Yeah we did, it wasn't nearly as painful as I thought it was going to be."

I nudge Dolph in the side for his sarcastic comment in reply Kaitlyn's words. To be honest, the date went extremely well. I had my reservations and thought that there could possibly be some tension between us, but we all had a laugh. It's nice to be in this little group and have so much fun for a change. Everything feels like it's finally getting back to normal.

"Dolph, you're as funny as ever. Anyway, me and Kaitlyn are going to head back to mine so I guess we will see you guys at the house show tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

I watch Zack and Kaitlyn walk to Zack's car. They've got their arms around each other and I can hear them laughing in the distance. Two people who I never would have imagined would be together, yet looking at them now and seeing how in love they are, I truly believe they were meant to be.

"Hey babe, you okay?"

I turn to face my boyfriend. He's shivering in the cold as he didn't bring a coat with him. His hair has become fluffy as the night has gone on. His blue eyes are twinkling in the moonlight. He really is the most beautiful man I've ever laid eyes on.

"Of course I am babe. Do you want to get back to the hotel?"

"Yeah yeah, let's get back." He takes his hands out of his pocket and moves a strand of my hair behind my ear. My body starts to tingle at his slightest touch despite the amount of times he's done this before. The little gestures always seem to make a huge difference.

"How did I manage to get myself such an incredibly stunning girlfriend? I'm pretty sure I'm the luckiest guy on the planet."

* * *

Never in my life have I been in a comfier bed. Dolph paid for a lavish and romantic hotel room for us tonight and honestly it's so beautiful! I'm quite a simple girl who doesn't like having things that are over-priced, but the room is so luxurious, I feel like a princess.

Dolph exits the bathroom wearing nothing but some boxer shorts. _Such a show off. _Hell, I don't even care about what present he's got me, just observing him like this is a good enough gift for me. He goes over to his suitcase and pulls out a red gift bag. It still feels kinda weird giving and receiving gifts on Valentine's day. But I obviously want to let him know that I love his show off butt.

"Okay AJ, who's gift giving first?"

"Well seeing as your gift is probably going to be better than mine, why don't you open mine first."

I hand the small envelope to Dolph and he looks at the item confused. He takes it anyway and withdraws the item from inside.

"Wow AJ.. Babe, where did you get these?!"

"That's for me to know. The other day you were complaining about that comedy show being sold out, so I worked my magic and managed to get some tickets for the two of us to go next week."

"You're the best! Oh man, seriously you don't realise how much I've been wanting to go to this!"

Seeing his reaction to my gift that I was unsure that he'd like that much makes my entire night. He's like a little kid at Christmas. I adore seeing that pearly white smile of his that makes my stomach do backflips. "Well that's why I bought it silly. Now c'mon Ziggy, hand over my goodie bag."

Still with a smile on his face he hands me the red bag. I quickly rip off the tape and see the goods inside. There are 3 presents and one of the multi coloured items instantly catches my eye.

"You got me jellybeans?"

"Yeah, I thought it would be a cool idea, because you're always stealing mine. That's not the best gift though."

I laugh at the cute thought for one of my gifts. I continue to rummage in the bag and notice a velvet box. But.. Ziggy knows I'm really picky when it comes to jewellery. I take the box out of the bag and lift the lid. Inside is a gorgeous and expensive looking silver bracelet with a small heart shaped pendant. On closer look I notice that inscribed on it are the initials 'AJ & DZ'.

"I know that you're not overly big on people buying you jewellery, so I was hesitant to get you this, but it's Valentine's day and one of the traditional things to buy the woman you love is something like that, so I did."

"Ziggy.. I love it. I'm really fussy when it comes to stuff like this but.. it's so beautiful. Will you put it on my wrist please?"

Dolph takes the personalised gift and puts it on my wrist. I look up to him with tears starting to form in my eyes. I don't know why I'm always crying around Dolph because I'm really not the crying type of girl. It's just every time he does something so sweet my eyes start to well up because he's so utterly perfect. I lean over to meet his lips and begin a passionate kiss to let him know how grateful I am. He pulls away from me after a few seconds and starts to chuckle

"Babe, you haven't even seen the last gift yet. How about you see that one and _then _you can carry on kissing me."

I wink at him for his cheekiness and then I pull out the last item in the bag. It's a silver photo frame with a picture in it. The picture is of Me and Dolph from two years ago. We both have the cheesiest grins on our faces and we both are showing the peace sign with our hands. I vaguely remember the photo being taken, but for the life of me I cannot remember where we were at the time.

"This is such a cute photo Ziggy, and I love the gift, but why this photo out of all of the one's we have taken recently?"

"There's a small meaning behind why I chose that photo. That day we were in your home town of New Jersey and I ended up meeting your mum while you were out. She told me a lot about your childhood and how you grew up homeless and so many other things about you. She also said to me that she wanted you to find a nice man to settle down with one day, and she thought that I would be perfect for you. Well that photo was taken about an hour later after I met her and I think that's the moment when I realised that I had developed feelings for you. Because I realised that you are my ideal woman and just knowing that your mum thought I was perfect for you made me feel as if somehow we would end up together. And look where we are now."

That's it. Just when I thought I couldn't love this man any more, he says that.

"You met my mum? I didn't even know that babe. I can't even express how much I love this picture. Well, all the presents really. I love you so much."

"I'm glad you like them. Yeah, you were at training with Kaitlyn and I ran in to your mum and we must have talked for like an hour just about you. By the way, I love you too."

I move the gifts out of the way and move closer to Dolph until I'm eventually sitting on his lap.

"Can I _show_ you how much I love you Ziggy?"

"Hmm.. what do you have in mind babe?"

I shoot a seductive look at him and just as I'm about to kiss Dolph again, his phone starts to ring. Ugh, who wants to interrupt our Valentine's day at this time of night? Dolph reaches over to see who's calling, and I catch sight of the caller ID. I can't even believe my eyes.

_Nikki. _Why is she calling him on Valentine's day? At such a late time? I don't think my emotions have ever switched from happy to angry so quickly.

"Dolph, why is she calling you?"

"I.. I don't know babe. I'll just ignore her."

He clicks the red decline button. That does not change the fact that this whore is ringing my boyfriend on _Valentine's day. _All the insecurities and doubt that I'd managed to put in the back of my mind are back again in full force.

"It's 11 o' clock at night Dolph, no-one rings up someone at this time of night unless it's for a good reason."

"It's Nikki though, no reason can be good enough to make me want to talk to her."

"Oh really? So why the hell were you talking to her the other night?"

I jump off of Dolph's lap and begin to pace the room. I really need to try and calm myself down before this turns into an argument, but because I hate her so much, the fury is only getting worse.

"How do you know that I was talking to her?"

"No, that's not the important question here. I should be asking you why the hell didn't you tell me about it?"

"I.. I didn't want you to get worked up about it like how you're clearly getting worked up now. She was just being her usual self and we only spoke for like a minute."

"Maybe if you'd told me that she was the one who you were talking to Monday night instead of just saying _someone _you used to know, I wouldn't get this worked up."

"Babe, I'm sorry okay? Let's just go back to how we were a few minutes ago _please_. Don't let Nikki ruin our night."

"I can't help it Dolph. I know the history between you two. Do you really expect me not to get a little agitated or suspicious of how you two were talking and you wouldn't tell me about it? And now she's calling you late at night. Wouldn't that seem weird to you if it was the other way round?"

"AJ I get it okay, it looks weird but you should know that I would never **ever** get back with Nikki if that's what you're thinking. I don't know why she just called me and I don't want to know. I want to spend the night with my girlfriend and talk to only her, no-one else."

"I never said anything about you guys getting back together. I'm sorry if this spoils our night Dolph, but she gets me so mad I could literally kill her."

"AJ why didn't you tell me you knew that I spoke to her?"

"BECAUSE OF THIS!" I'm now raising my voice at him. He doesn't exactly deserve this but I really haven't been this mad in a while. "I didn't want to argue with you about this but Dolph, I'm so pissed off right now."

"Why are you getting mad at me AJ? It's not like I'm the one who rang her or intentionally wanted to talk to her the other night. Besides, when I did talk to her I told her that I'm so much happier with someone else than I was with her."

"That's a little hard for me to believe."

He looks taken aback by what I have to say. Maybe saying that I didn't believe him wasn't the right way to go. Well done AJ.

"You're never going to trust me are you?"

I did not expect him to say that. "What? Of course I trust you."

"No. No you don't trust me. You automatically assumed that I slept with that girl who was my cousin a few weeks ago and now you're thinking that something's going on with me and Nikki. You don't even have to say it AJ, I can tell where your head's at."

"I do trust you, you should know that I do. The person who I don't trust is Nikki. And don't even deny that it looked weird that an attractive blonde girl was coming out of your bedroom. How was I supposed to know she was your cousin? You've never even mentioned her before!"

"Stop it AJ, you don't trust me, you know you don't! How many times now have I explained to you how I feel about you and yet your damn insecurities have got you thinking the worst. When is it gonna stop? We've been together almost a week and already we're having an argument over something so ridiculous."

"That's why I didn't bring it up that I knew about your conversation. Look, I do trust you but you're one to talk! You're the one who didn't trust me when we started this whole thing!"

He doesn't even reply to me. He just turns around and starts to get dressed. Now he's starting to pack his bags. I can feel my stomach drop. He's leaving?

"What are you doing? Dolph?"

"I'm getting out of here AJ."

"What? Why?"

"BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS RIGHT NOW!" He's now in my face and raising his voice for the first time tonight. "I am not arguing over something ridiculous, and you're clearly so mad that we can't have a romantic night like I'd hoped. AJ, babe you mean the world to me okay? But I'm tired of arguing over stupid things that we shouldn't be arguing about. And I'm tired of thinking that there's some trust issues between us. I can't deal with this right now, I've gotta get outta here."

I want to stop him. I want to make him realise that I do trust him. I want to apologise over and over again until I lose my voice. But I can't. I can't even move out of my position. I'm stunned. I feel like someone just put my body on pause. It's happening again. He's walking out on me. All because I'm a stupid, idiotic, crazy, pathetic little girl who always jumps to conclusions and thinks the worst of people. I love him for god's sake, I shouldn't have shouted at him. I shouldn't have ever even thought that he would want to be with Nikki over me.

He closes the door behind him and I drop the floor. Why do I push him away? Why do I always have to do something to make him leave? He's right, we've been officially together just under a week and we're already arguing over something stupid. I bury my face in my hands. Someone please turn back the time so that I can make this all okay. As I remove my hands from my face I notice the precious bracelet on my wrist.

**_AJ & DZ. _**

Now, the tears are starting to flow.

* * *

**Longer chapter than usual. I was feeling creative. Anyway.. Review, Favourite, Follow; whatever floats your boat. :P **


	25. Chapter 25

**This chapter's slightly different to the others because it has both points of view in the same chapter. Happy reading! :)**

* * *

AJ's pov

**Friday 15****th**** February – 6:30 pm**

There's something about sitting on the floor in the locker room that's slightly therapeutic. I remember my first day in NXT. I sat on the locker room floor rocking back and forth trying to try and get rid of the nerves of performing in front of such a large crowd. Just sitting here seemed to calm me somehow. It was the scariest thing in the world and now I'm completely used to going out there in front of the fans.

Today, over two years later, I'm still nervous. I'm still sat on the floor in the locker room, only this time it's not because I'm about to go there and wrestle. It's because in less than an hour I'm going to go out there and be a manager. A manager to my boyfriend who has ignored my last couple of texts and still hasn't arrived at the arena.

I've asked almost everyone in the building if they've seen him or even know if he's going to turn up tonight. Every single reply was the word 'no'. So here I shall wait. I'll wait in his locker room and hopefully any second now he'll burst through that door and if I'm lucky, we'll forget about everything that happened last night and move on from that disaster.

What are the chances of him forgetting about our argument and welcoming me back into his arms? They're pretty slim if you ask me. I didn't really sleep last night. My mind was working overtime trying to figure out how I could make it up to him for being such a horrible girlfriend. So far all I've come up with is apologise over and over again until he gets so annoyed with the sound of my voice that he has to be okay with me. I'm not quite sure if that will work though.

"Dolph? Are you in here?"

It's Zack. He wanders in to the small locker room and eventually catches sight of me sat cross legged on the floor in the corner.

"AJ? What are you doing in here? And where's Dolph?"

"I.. uhh.. I don't know where he is."

"Is that because of what happened between you guys last night? Kait told me."

Typical. I should watch what I say to Kaitlyn considering she tells Ryder everything. I don't even feel like answering him so I just nod my head and then turn my attention to the floor. I promised myself I wouldn't cry again today after last night's sobbing session, but just recalling our argument is starting to make me feel weepy.

Zack walks over and then plops himself down on the floor next to me. "So are you going to explain what happened between you and my best broski then?"

"It's complicated. And really dumb."

"I'm sure it's not. I'm here with you so why not open up to me?"

This is something I never expected to happen. I would have sworn on my life Zack hated me, but here he is asking me to pour all of my personal problems onto him. Kaitlyn's lucky to have him.

"Basically, Nikki Bella happened. Her and Dolph were talking the other day, I'm not sure about what. He didn't tell me about it and then last night she rang his phone at 11pm. I went classic 'AJ crazy chick' on him and now we're not talking."

"Nikki? Dolph never mentioned talking with her to me either."

"Which is a little weird right?"

"Yeah I guess. Dolph doesn't exactly tell me everything anymore; you're the person he opens up to lately. It is a little unusual that he's back in contact with her and wouldn't tell you."

"That's the thing, I don't know if he's back in contact with her. I just.. I think knowing that those two were together for quite a while and how strong his feelings were for her has made me paranoid. Just seeing her caller ID on his phone last night made me freak out."

"I don't blame you for freaking out. Nikki's a nasty piece of work, and I can't imagine her calling Dolph would be a good thing. But why did you end up arguing with Dolph because of her?"

That's the golden question. Why oh why did I take my frustration out on him because of his vindictive ex-girlfriend? "I don't even know. I jumped to conclusions and ended up thinking the worst."

"What, did you think him and Nikki were a thing or something?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe I did. I'm an insecure person Zack, and I guess it's still a little hard for me to believe that he would choose me over someone like her, despite how mean she was to him. She's beautiful and he was in love with her once.."

"Yeah he was in love with her, but she screwed him over and treated him like crap and he got over her. It doesn't matter how attractive she is AJ, she's a bitch. Plain and simple. He's crazy about you so there's no chance he would ever want to go back to her."

Zack puts his arm around my shoulders as a way of comforting me. This feels slightly strange as he's never been this close to me before. "You know, I genuinely thought you hated me Zack. Now you're here trying to cheer me up. It's a tad weird for me."

"I've never hated you in my life! Sure, we've never exactly been buddies but I never hated you. And anyway, how could I hate my girlfriend's best friend and my best friend's girlfriend?"

We both start to laugh at the wordplay Zack used. He _has_ managed to make me feel a little better.

"Thanks. I really appreciate you cheering me up and I'm glad you don't hate me."

"No problem. Now what I suggest you do is stay here and wait for the show off to turn up whilst I go job to some random guy on the roster. Okay?"

I giggle again even though Zack's 'jobber' status within WWE isn't really that funny. "Okay. That's what I'll do. Have fun out there."

Zack gestures a fist bump and I immediately accept. He picks himself off the floor and leaves the room to go to his match.

_I know what I'll do now. _I'll wait for Dolph to arrive and we'll talk things through. Everything should be okay. Right?

* * *

Dolph's pov

The tap on my car window causes me to jump. I lift my head up from the steering wheel and look over to the passenger side of the car to see Kaitlyn standing outside. She mouths the words 'you gonna let me in?' at me. Can't she tell that the reason why I'm still in my car is because I don't want to talk to anyone right now? I let her in anyway.

"What are you still doing in here Dolph? Everyone is expecting you inside you know."

"I know. I'm going in soon; I just wanted some time to think."

"Let me guess, there's a converse wearing, mortal kombat playing crazy chick on your mind."

**AJ**. When is she ever not on my mind? After what happened between me and her last night, I'm still feeling slightly bummed out about it. The last thing that I wanted to happen on a romantic night together was for us to argue.

"Yeah, that's the one. Did she tell you about what happened?"

"She texted me last night saying you two had an argument, but she didn't say much more than that."

"It was about something incredibly stupid. We shouldn't have even argued."

"What happened?"

I release a huge sigh as I begin to explain to Kait everything that's happened lately. "Monday night, I ran into someone. I ran into Nikki."

"Nikki? As in your ex-girlfriend Nikki?"

"Yeah, _that_ Nikki. Anyway, she just randomly started talking to me and we didn't talk for long really. She said her BS and I told her I was happy with someone else. That's pretty much it. I didn't think of it as a really big deal, but the problem was, I didn't tell AJ about it."

"Oh.."

"Is it really a bad thing that I didn't tell AJ about a 1 minute long conversation?"

Kaitlyn looks at me dumbfounded. Am I missing something? "It's probably got nothing to do with the fact you didn't tell her about a random conversation, but the point is it's with Nikki. Come on Dolph, you know how insecure and paranoid she is. Anyway, is that it? Surely there's more behind why you argued."

"Well, last night we were having a great time you know? We had just given each other some gifts and then out of the blue, Nikki called me up. AJ saw her on caller ID and she flipped out."

"What do you mean she flipped out?"

"She told me that someone told her about me and Nikki talking, and then started asking me why would she call me so late at night. How was I supposed to know why Nikki was calling? I rejected the call! But yeah, AJ started thinking that something was going on between me and her and when I told her that nothing's happening she said she can't believe me. After she said that I had to get out of there. It hurt to hear her practically say that she doesn't trust me."

"Wow. I've known AJ to be a little irrational from time to time, but that sounds crazy, even for her."

"My head's been messed up for the past day and I'm just trying to make sense of everything and figure out how and if I can fix things. What do you think about it all Kait?"

Kaitlyn shuffles in her seat so she's directly facing me. I can tell this means that she's going to give me some good advice, and boy do I need it. "Did AJ ever tell you about Dylan?"

Dylan? Who the frick is Dylan?! "Er, no. She's never mentioned that name to me before."

"That doesn't surprise me. Don't tell her I told you this, because it's a rough subject for her to talk about. Anyway, Dylan was AJ's first real boyfriend. She adored him. They were only together for a few months but in the last few weeks of their relationship, he treated her like crap. He would try and ignore her at all costs and eventually, AJ found him in bed with another woman. It broke her heart and in a way I don't think she's ever fully recovered from that."

"What a dick. Didn't he realise he had one of the greatest girls in the world?"

"I know right? The reason why I told you about that is because I think that's the moment where AJ started to never feel good enough. That's the point where she started to loathe herself and I'm guessing that's why she would have doubts about you and Nikki. It's not because she doesn't trust you, she's just had bad experiences."

Everything that she's saying is sinking in. It's all making sense to me. I always figured that something like that must have happened to make AJ so insecure, but she never mentioned why. "I don't understand why that douche would do that to AJ. How he could have found a better woman than her, I'm not sure."

"Here's the thing, she thought she was falling for Dylan but that was more of an infatuation. She's only ever been in love with one man and that's you. It's a little hard for her to accept that you actually care about her back. She just needs some time to adjust to that and when she does she'll be fine and will stop being so irrational about things."

Maybe everything will be okay with me and AJ. I just need to let her know that I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, and that I love her. Something else other than the geek goddess is playing on my mind right now though. "Kaitlyn.. you say that AJ was infatuated with this Dylan guy. Is it kinda like how you were with me a few years ago?"

Kaitlyn stares blankly at me. Maybe it's still a touchy subject to think about how I didn't want to be with her. "I guess it's similar to that, yes. The only difference is I didn't end up feeling worthless after it. I got over it in the end."

"I'm glad Kait. AJ told me how upset you got over it and that's part of the reason why she didn't want to be with me at first. I felt so bad about that and I don't think I've ever had the chance to truly apologise about it."

"It's okay. I mean, it hurt like hell when you rejected me Dolph. I don't think I've ever been so upset over a guy before. But, I'm glad you did reject me because if you didn't, I probably wouldn't have Zack and I can't imagine my life without him."

I smile at the thought of her and Zack. It's nice to know that they both have each other, even if they were an unlikely couple. "I'm happy that you two got together. I wasn't sure about it at first but I really think that you were meant to be."

"Thanks, I feel the same way. I also think that about you and AJ. It might have something to do with how I knew you had feelings for her a few years ago."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I saw that look on your face whenever she walked through the door. Your face practically lit up. I think knowing that I was second best to her in your eyes is what hurt the most."

"I'm sorry.."

"Don't be, honestly. Can't help who you fall for right? Besides, I have someone who cares about me just like how you care for her and that's all that matters. All that other stuff is in the past now."

"You're right Kait. I'm happy that we can do that and move on as friends now."

"Look, I gotta go and get ready for my match soon so you should probably get your butt in there and sort things out with AJ. She may be legit crazy, but I honestly don't know a better person than her. You would be a fool to let that one go."

Kaitlyn flashes a pearly white smile and then climbs out of my vehicle. Who knew that Kait could be so helpful? Everything feels a little clearer now, and for the first time since last night, I don't feel as if mine and AJ's relationship is doomed. She just needs someone who will love and respect her. Someone who will do absolutely anything for her. That someone is me, and I'm going to let her know that right now.


	26. Chapter 26

Dolph's pov

Less than an hour before I have to go out to the ring. Of course I'll be stealing the show as per usual. I just hope that tonight I can pick up a win but that's pretty unlikely. Because I'm the career 'bad guy', at live events it's normal to receive a loss. At least I'll have AJ in my corner to make things better after I lose. I hope.

Speaking of her, I can't seem to find the petite diva. I ran into Wade five minutes ago and he said that she was asking where I was. I've been looking for her all over the arena ever since. I think I'll just have to go get ready for my match and find her then.

I open the door to my locker room and put my luggage in the corner. Just as I turn around I see a small brunette woman sat on the floor with her head in her hands. It's my girlfriend. My heart jumps at the sight of her like this.

She lifts her head from her hands and immediately shoot up from off the floor.

"Hi. You're finally here."

She almost looks scared. Maybe it's due to how we left things last night. She takes a few steps closer to me. "Dolph.. I am so, so sorry for last night. I.."

Before she can finish her sentence I wrap my arms around her frame. There are no words that I feel the need to say right now to make everything okay, but I just want to let her know that I love her by showing my affection. She quickly reciprocates the hug and puts her arms around my torso. It feels good to just have her in my arms after a full day of being without her. I kiss the top of her head and start to run my fingers through my hair. Her scent is now filling up my senses because I'm so close to her. I can smell the usual fragrance of vanilla mixed with coconut and for the first time since before our argument I feel relaxed.

"Dolph, does this mean you're not mad at me anymore?"

"Babe, I was never really mad at you, I just hate arguing. I get why you were so wound up but just know that I don't want to talk to Nikki and I refuse to let her be a reason for us falling out."

"Okay. She won't ever come between us again. I just hate her you know? And knowing that she talked to you just made me feel so uncomfortable."

"I should have told you about that and I'm sorry. I knew that you'd probably get upset about it though, and it was really nothing so I thought it would be better to just act like I never spoke to her and see you happy instead."

"I get it. I'm happy now just knowing that we're okay. I think I got scared of losing you and instantly thought the worst."

"You need to get it into your head that I'm not leaving you any time soon babe. Me and you? We're going to be together for a long time. Maybe forever."

* * *

Surprise surprise. I lost my match.

It wasn't like I was on my own out there, I was tagging with CM Punk against Cena and Ryback. But of course, I was the one who took the fall. I don't even know why I'm so livid right now, I lose all of the freaking time. Why should tonight aggravate me so much? It probably has something to do with the look on AJ's face. Just as Cena had pinned me for the 3 count, I glanced over to see my beautiful girlfriend at ringside. Her facial expression said it all. She was disappointed. She was frustrated. She was disheartened. And above all else, I could tell she was feeling pitiful about my loss.

That's the one thing I can't stand from people. Pity. I don't need anyone taking pity out on me. I may be on a losing streak and maybe the company doesn't seem to trust me enough to be one of their top guys, but I will never want anybody's pity. As I walk back into my locker room I throw my briefcase against the white concrete wall.

"Dolph.. don't get so upset about this okay? You're going to start winning more matches soon babe so just calm down."

"I've been saying that for so long now AJ, and guess where it's gotten me? Nowhere. I may seem like I'm in a great position but I'm still doing the same thing all the damn time."

"But this is a live event, normally the heels lose. You're the money in the bank holder, things are going to get better."

"Are they? Can you honestly promise me that they are? Because right now it seems like all the momentum that I gained from being the sole survivor at survivor series and beating John-boy at TLC is dwindling away. Hell, at this point I wouldn't even be surprised if they made me cash in and lose. Then where will I be? Jobbing to someone like Mark Henry?"

"Stop thinking so negatively. You know that you're far too good to not become world champ."

"I've been far too good for years now AJ."

She can tell that I'm in such a foul mood. She walks over to me and runs her nimble little fingers up and down my arms. "You know back at the new year's toast where I said that you are going to own 2013? I meant it. It wasn't just for the script, but I believed it was the truth and I still do. You will own 2013 when you cash in that briefcase. You will be the world heavyweight champion and I'm going to be by your side no matter what."

What words describe AJ Lee best? Crazy chick? Devil's favourite diva? Geek goddess? No. I think the words to describe her would be angel sent from heaven. Because right now I'm not sure what I'd do without her. Just knowing that she has faith in me despite losing so much is calming me down. It means the world to me to have a supportive girlfriend. I kiss AJ on the forehead to show how much I care.

"Hey Dolph, just wanted to say that was a great match out there tonight. See you tomorrow."

My mood has instantly gone back to angry. **John Cena**. The guy who beat me coming to congratulate me on a good match? What a fucking joke.

"Sure John, you would think it was a great match wouldn't you? I mean, you won the damn thing and it's not as if you did much wrestling in it did you? I had to practically carry you through the entire twenty minutes!"

AJ nudges me in the side as a way to get me to shut up. Right now I don't care. He may be the franchise of the company, and if he wanted to he could probably get me fired, but I am sick of having to lose to this goof who doesn't need any more victories under his belt to be a main eventer.

"Dolph, I don't know why you're getting all mad at me for, it's not like I'm the one who books things around here."

"No, you don't book the matches but because you're such an ass kisser you get wins handed to you all of the damn time and I'm tired of it!"

"That's an issue that you should go take up with Vince or creative. Not me."

"Why can't I take it up with you? You're the top guy around here, why can't I be able to air out my frustrations to you?"

"Because I don't make the decisions Dolph! If you have a legitimate gripe then go talk to a McMahon member now. They're running around these halls somewhere. For now just accept that we had a good match and made the fans happy. That's all that matters."

"That's such a typical boy scout line from you!" I'm now fully in his face with AJ tugging on my arm to stop arguing with him.

"Babe, you really need to calm down."

"_Babe?_ So you two are a couple in real life now? I never knew. Wow Ziggler, I feel sorry for you being stuck with the resident lunatic."

That's it. There's no way in hell I'm allowing this jackass to disrespect the woman I love like that. I grab his t-shirt in my hands and push him against the wall. Who the hell does he think he is? Company poster boy or not, no-one badmouths my girl.

"You do **not **talk about AJ in that way, got it?!"

A smirk appears on Cena's face almost as if to taunt me. AJ manages to squeeze into the middle of us and push me away from him.

"Dolph, you need to think about what you're saying here! I know you're pissed off, but shouting at John isn't going to solve anything!" She turns away from me to direct her attention to Cena. "Can you leave us alone please? I need to talk to my boyfriend."

"Fine. And hey Dolph.. I'll let your little rant go this time, but if you decide to argue with me again over something like this, I won't be as kind."

What a dick. Finally he's leaving the room. AJ closes the door behind him and then looks at me. In a way, I feel like I've let her down by losing my temper with John. Man, I never thought I'd be like this with her but it's just the effect she has on me. She makes me want to be a better person, and when I get mad like this, it's like I've failed.

"I'm sorry AJ. I had to get all that off my chest, and then when he started to diss you I couldn't resist wanting to hurt him."

She smiles and then makes her way over to me. "Let's get out of here."

"What?" I expected her to be a little angry at me, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

"You're stressed out right now so we need to get out of this arena and do something to make you relax a little bit. That sound good?"

She's definitely an angel. "It sounds like just what I need babe."

* * *

**I meant to mention it the other day, but did everyone see the proposal video of Dolph and AJ? It was so cute! :D **


	27. Chapter 27

AJ's pov

"Tell me about a good day in your life."

"What?"

"Tell me about a good day in your life. Something memorable that made you feel good."

"But why?"

"Because Ziggy, you've been irritated ever since your match earlier, so I want to talk about something positive and I think this is a good place to start."

I decided to take my boyfriend to the beach that is around twenty minutes away from the arena. I don't know why tonight is so much different from the other nights he has lost a match, but he's got so much built up aggression inside of him right now. Maybe it's just the disappointment from the string of losses has finally come down on him tonight. It's understandable, but it pains me to see him this way. He's usually so positive about things. He tends to be the one to be cheering me up about whatever drama I'm going through, but now it's my turn to be there for him.

"I don't know AJ, I've been through a lot of great moments in my life."

"Great! Now pick one and talk about it."

He raises his eyebrows at me. He clearly doesn't understand the concept of what I'm trying to do here. "Is there a reason for all this?"

"Yes there is. A while ago it felt like I was feeling low all of the time, and someone said to me that a way to make you feel better is to recall some good moments in your life. It worked for me and I think that's exactly what you need right now."

Dolph shakes his head and takes a bite of the ice cream I bought him from the nearby store. I shuffle a little closer to him and put my hand on his back. "A good day in my life?"

"Yes."

Dolph sighs and then scratches the back of his head. I know he has had some pretty great days in his life, because I've been fortunate enough to be by his side on a few of them. "Well, I guess one good day that I had was on January 30th 2011. It was my first world heavyweight championship match that I've ever had and one of the best matches in my career. All day I was so hyped up for it and even though I ultimately lost, I was told by so many people that I looked up too and even Edge himself that I'm gonna be the champ one day because I'm amazing at what I do. It was beyond humbling and gratifying."

Is that a little smile I see on the show off's face? That's the first time I've seen that smile since before we went to the ring for his tag match. "I remember watching that match. You were incredible as always. You're going to be the one defending that title soon, you know that right?"

"It's easy to say that babe, but it isn't set in stone. They could always change their minds and decide that I'm going to be the second person in history to have a failed cash in."

"Woah, we're not going down the being depressed route again. Don't even think about failing. So January 30th was a great day, any others?"

He turned his head and then his eyes became transfixed on mine. It's really dark out here, and the only source of light is from a few lights in the distance, but I can still see his eyes sparkle. He continues to stare at me until he lays his head down onto the blanket we've layed out and then tugs me down to lay next to him. I can feel his arm sneak around my shoulder so I decide to snuggle up against his chest.

"Another great day. Well, there was the day that I met you.."

**Flashback – September 7th 2010**

_"I'm so nervous Kait. We perform in front of a crowd every week at FCW but this will be the first time we go out in front of **thousands. **I'm not sure if I can handle it."_

_"Hey, I'm nervous too but it's not that bad. This is all you've ever wanted right? You should be excited girl!"_

_"No, I am excited I just.. What if they hate us? What if no-one ends up watching us because we're not good enough?"_

_Kaitlyn stops curling her hair so she can put her hands on my shoulders to calm me down. "Everything is going to be fine. We're going to go out there and we're going to kill it! That's what chickbusters do AJ."_

_"I thought the chickbusters were supposed to beat up chicks?"_

_"You have to be a smart ass don't you? I'm going to find Vickie, I'll see you out there."_

_I watch Kaitlyn walk down the hall as I try to calm my nerves. It really helps to have my best friend by my side in this competition. I know all of the other girls who will be competing in this thing too from FCW, but Kaitlyn's presence always makes me feel calmer when I'm nervous. _

_I observe the way I look today in the mirror before me. I'm wearing a short lilac dress with some glittery black heels. I have a little bit more makeup on than usual and my hair is wavy. **This doesn't feel like me**. The woman who I can see in the reflection isn't AJ Lee. The real AJ would be wearing skinny jeans, converse and a Pikachu t-shirt. She would probably be playing on her xbox, owning all the online players on smackdown vs raw, not talking, dancing and trying to get thousands to like her. I want to get out there and wrestle. Sure, I do have a tag match scheduled for tonight but still, it's only supposed to last a few minutes._

_I aggressively start to run my fingers through my hair. This has become a force of habit with me whenever I'm nervous about something. As I do this, I feel a tap on my shoulder._

_"Hi, I felt the need to come over and introduce myself. I'm Dolph Ziggler."_

_I quickly swivel around to face the superstar who was introducing himself to me. Dolph Ziggler. I know who this man is. He's an extremely talented guy. Kaitlyn was gushing over the fact that she gets to work close with him now Vickie is her pro. She always goes on about how good looking he is, but I honestly never saw it. Until now. Man, he's hot in person. _

_"H..Hi. I know who y-you are. I'm AJ." Great first impression. Stuttering on my words._

_"Ah so you're AJ. Kaitlyn's talked a lot about you. What does AJ stand for then?"_

_"April Jeanette. But honestly, I like to be called AJ."_

_"Okay AJ. So you're interested in becoming WWE's next star. I must admit.. you're a little shorter than the average diva."_

_Oh here we go. He's going to start dissing my height. He's known for being a total jerk on TV, why would he be any different to me? I choose to ignore the height comment._

_"Yes, I've been interested in becoming a diva for a long, long time. Why?"_

_"Just asking. When I met your best friend for the first time earlier on today, she mentioned that you were.. short."_

_"Are you really fixating on my height? You're not exactly the tallest superstar on the roster."_

_He starts to laugh at me. Did I say something funny? I genuinely didn't intend it to be. "You're fiery. I like it. And hey, I know I'm not the tallest of guys but there's an advantage that people like me and you have. We don't have to worry about getting hit by the ceiling fan."_

_He winks at me and despite the lame 'short people' joke, I giggle like a little fangirl. Looking at him now, it's hard to believe that I never saw the attraction that Kait saw. He has these piercing blue eyes that have an extra little shine when he's happy. _

_"You know AJ, I like you. From what I've heard and seen of you, I think we could get along really well."_

_Is it weird that a total stranger talking to me has managed to make me less nervous? "Yeah, maybe we will get along." I see a tech guy down the hall signalling me to go make my entrance to the ring. It's show time. Brace yourself AJ. "I'm sorry Dolph, but I have to go. Talk later?"_

_"Sure, I'll talk to you later. All I was really going to say to you was try not to be overwhelmed by my good looks and try even harder to not fall in love with me like every other girl on the planet."_

_"I promise that I won't end up falling in love with you Dolph."_

"Oh yeah, that was a pretty good day. I was so nervous! After my match against Goldust and Aksana, you and Zack ended up talking with me and Kaitlyn all night."

"Who would have guessed things would end up like how they are now? Me and you in a couple and also Zack and Kaitlyn. I had a lot of fun with you that day. When I saw you looking so sexy in that purple dress, I had to go up and talk to you."

"You thought I looked _sexy_ in that thing? I felt awkward in it!"

"To be fair, you look sexy in anything, but that dress and the way it accentuated your curves. Trust me, it was sexy as hell."

I blush in front of him and bury my face into his chest. I can feel his body moving from laughing at my awkwardness. I've never been used to people calling me sexy.

"AJ babe, why do you get embarrassed when I call you sexy? You're my girlfriend, I'm supposed to be honest and also compliment you."

"I guess it still feels a little weird you saying things like that about me. I'm sure that I'm living every girls dream."

"If anyone's living everyone else's dream, it's me. Do you understand how many dudes I get coming up to me telling me that I'm the luckiest man on earth?"

"Probably not as many as you seem to be implying. But changing the subject a little, you seem happier now than you were earlier. Has my strategy to cheer you up worked?"

A big cheesy smile spreads across his face and I can feel a tingle in my stomach to know that I'm the one who raised his spirits.

"Yes babe, your little technique has made me a lot happier."

I show a proud grin and then lean up to kiss his lips. I only leave little pecks on his mouth, but in between kisses I manage to mutter a few words. "You know." **Kiss**. "I know someone." **Kiss**. "Who truly is." **Kiss.** "Sexy as hell." **Kiss.**

"Oh yeah? And who might that be?"

I wink at Dolph and then begin to slowly leave a trail of feathered kisses down his neck and torso. He didn't put a shirt on when we left the arena so that means I can feel the heat of his skin against my lips. Lust has managed to over-power me at this point, so I get up and straddle Dolph's waist. I bend down and crash my lips onto his to start a passionate, rough kiss. He immediately returns the kiss and runs his hands under my shirt.

I start to tug on his hair and kiss his neck yet again. I think I like to do this the most when I'm with Dolph because I love the feel of his hair and he always wears the most gorgeous smelling cologne.

"Babe, babe stop."

"What's the matter Ziggy?"

"Nothing's the matter babe, and you have no idea how much I want to carry on doing this with you.. but we're on a beach right now. Anyone could walk past and not a lot of people know about our real life relationship."

Damn, he's right. I completely forgot we were in a public place. I blame Dolph and his overwhelming beauty. I jump off of his now laughing body and begin to pack up my things.

"Are we leaving AJ?"

"Yeah. You just said you wanted to carry on doing this with me.. So why not back at a hotel?"

Even in the dim light I can see that seductive smirk on his face. He jumps up next to me and helps me pick all of our stuff up off from the sand. Once we make our way back to the car he gently pulls on my arm to stop me.

"What's up Dolph?"

"I uh.. just wanted to say I'm glad that we're okay and I'm so sorry about last night and tonight. I need you to know that I love you. _So much_. Everything seems better when you're around and I know I sound like a lovesick idiot right now, but I sincerely mean every word babe."

His kindness and adorability never fails to amaze me. If only he knew of how he makes me weak in the knees by saying only a few words. "I know that on the first day we met I promised you that I wouldn't fall in love with you. Well, I can safely say that I was wrong. I love you too baby."

He leans down to kiss me on my cheek and then we walk towards the car hand in hand. I am going to make sure that I cherish this feeling of being so blissfully happy and in love, just in case it gets taken away from me.

* * *

**Cute little flashback chapter for you guys. I mentioned in the beginning that they met on the first day of NXT so I thought I'd clear up their first encounter. Hope you all enjoyed! **


	28. Chapter 28

AJ's pov

**Thursday 28****th**** February **

**_'AJ & DZ'_**

That's what the pendant on my beautiful gift from Dolph reads. _Me and him_. It's symbolic. No-one ever expected us to get together. You take one look at the two of us and you just don't think that we would click. Here is the reasons why.

He's the bleach blonde superstar who comes off as this total ladies' man. No-one would ever think that he would commit to a woman, never mind someone like me. He appears to be this charismatic, annoying jerk who you're more than likely going to end up hating for whatever reason. _But that's not the real Dolph. _The real Dolph is still a bleach blonde superstar who is charismatic and can be a jerk depending on who you are, But he's not really a ladies man. He's sweet, caring, devoted, loving, honourable and kind. In fact he told me he hasn't had that many girlfriends. Sure, that's a little hard to believe considering how amazing he is, but even his brother agreed that he's never exactly been the most smoothest of males when it comes to women.

Then there's me. On screen I am the crazy chick. I love recklessly and stupidly, and I can switch my emotions at the drop of a hat. Someone who now appears to be extremely confident in comparison to the girl she was with Daniel Bryan. Someone who is apparently wanted by the majority of the locker room, despite being perceived to be bonkers. _But that's not the real me. _I'm really self-conscious, and the confidence thing is simply an act. I would prefer to stay in and play video games than going out and getting drunk. Not many guys want to be with me in real life, but I have been hurt before by men and it has caused me to be a little loopy from time to time.

That is what makes me and Dolph work. We can see what we're both like when we're away from work and we love each other all the more for it. I know some people may say "but AJ you haven't even been with him that long", but that doesn't matter. This relationship has been over two years in the making and the only thing that I can speak confidently about is how he has managed to become the first (and hopefully only) man that I've ever been in love with.

Speaking of the handsome devil, he's back from empty stomach cardio. We're currently staying in a hotel at Kalamazoo for the live event Saturday, but Dolph has been at the gym nearly all day. I get up from the couch and race to go greet him at the door. He's still sweating from the cardio, but nonetheless I still throw my arms around his neck.

"Woah babe, I'm liking this kind of greeting when I walk through the door."

"Well that's good because I plan on doing it more often!"

I lean up on my tip toes to smother him with a flurry of kisses. Once I've finished showing my affection he begins to laugh at me. "That's fine by me. Hey, did you read my tweet about Cleveland?"

"No, I haven't been on twitter much today. Why what's it say?"

"Why don't you read it for yourself?"

Hm.. that's a little suspicious. I walk over to the coffee table to pick up my IPhone and then begin to scroll through my twitter interactions. I suddenly see Dolph's icon of him with a zebra patterned sleeping mask and his trademark pink glasses.

'_ HEELZiggler: CLEVELAND WWE SUNDAY 5pm! Showing off my little angel WWEAJLee at home & in the ring! Ready to meet my parents, babe?_ _'_

He called me his angel. He's never used that word to describe me before. More importantly, meet his parents? I haven't had that many boyfriends in my life, but when I have met my boyfriend's parents before, I didn't make the best of impressions. If people think I get nervous in interviews, they really haven't seen what I'm like in that situation. My heart starts to race a little just at the thought.

"You want me to meet your parents?"

"We are going back to my hometown, and they are coming to the show. Of course I want them to meet my girlfriend! Did you expect me to never want to introduce you to them?"

"No it's just.. I'm a little scared they won't like me. What if they've made judgements of me already based on my character? Oh my god I bet they think I'm some kind of slut."

"Woah babe, don't think that! They understand that people are different from their characters. Besides, I spoke with them both on the phone and I let them know some of the wonderful things about you that I love."

I guess that makes me feel a little less paranoid. I'm still worked up about meeting them though. This isn't just any guy's parents I'm going to be meeting. This is Dolph's parents, and if they end up hating me, I have no idea how I'll be able to handle it. For all I know it could become a huge problem in our relationship and then we would end up breaking up. Okay, _maybe_ I'm over analysing things a little too much, but damn what if that happened?

"Wonderful things? Like what exactly?"

He smirks and then puts his huge manly arms around my waist. "That's for me to know. I can't exactly go into detail about _all _of the wonderful qualities you have because that would take at least all damn night."

"You just don't want to boost my ego, right Ziggy?"

"There's that and also the fact that I can think of something much better to do all night with you."

I wrap my arms around his neck for the second time tonight and press my lips against his. Just like that, all the doubts about meeting his parents have disappeared with one kiss.

"I like the sound of that babe, but aren't you tired from the gym?"

"I am _never _too tired to spend the night with my girl."

* * *

**Saturday 2****nd**** March – 6:39 pm**

Kalamazoo smackdown live event tonight, and for the first time in a while, I have a match! One of the girls from NXT named Paige will be my opponent for a few days. I'm so excited to be working in the ring with her, as many people are practically salivating at the thought of her debuting on the main roster. Quite a few people have told me that this is a kind of dream match as I am apparently the best diva on the main roster (despite not having a match in a while) and she is the most supported diva in NXT. I've met her on a couple of occasions, and she's sweet. She has such a passion for the business that mirrors mine and that's why I like her. It's going to be a thrilling match.

I've left Dolph on his own for a little while so he can warm up for his match later on tonight. Hopefully I'll be able to be in his corner for his match as well as have a match of my own. As much as I've been dying to get back in the ring and despite some of my fans opinions, I love being able to support my man. It's like watching poetry in motion when he wrestles, and I've actually learned some more stuff just observing his technique in the ring.

As I trudge through the halls looking for Big E, my phone starts to go off. It's Kaitlyn. She's been doing some signings so she hasn't been able to come to this event and wrestle tonight.

"Hey Kait, what's wrong?"

"Why does anything have to be wrong for me to call you up?"

"You hardly ever call me unless you want something, and you also know I have a match soon so what's up?"

"I was just calling up to see if everything's going okay down there. I'm also very bored here and oh, I wanted to make sure that you and Dolph are okay, because it seems like you get into some kind of argument every week."

"Ha ha, very funny. We're doing great; ever since that argument on Valentine's day we have been happier than ever."

"Aw, I'm glad AJ. I suppose I should let you go and get ready for your match anyway, hope it's good. I've faced Paige before and.."

Whatever Kait was saying to me just seemed to fade away when I saw a certain person in the distance.

_Nikki._

That woman makes my blood boil by just being in the same freaking arena. What on earth is she doing here?! Her beloved John boy isn't here so why does she have to breathe the same air as me? I swear on all that is good in the world, if she goes anywhere near Dolph tonight, I will not be held responsible for my actions.

"..AJ? _AJ? Hellooo? _Girl, are you there?"

"Yeah I'm here Kait. I'm sorry but I have to go. I'll text you or something later."

Before I give her a chance to reply I hang up on her. My eyes and thoughts are purely fixated on the former diva. Hang on a second, that _could_ be Brie. I mean, Daniel is here tonight. No wait, he mentioned to me earlier that Brie was back at home because she's ill, so that can't be her. There's only one way to find out I guess.

I begin to walk over to one half of the Bella twins and with every step that I get closer to her, I can feel venom build up inside me. Dolph ended up telling me about everything she said to him, things like I'm not woman enough for him or that I can't satisfy him. It was something along those lines anyway.

"Nikki?"

"Yes? Oh AJ, hello. I haven't seen you in a while. How have you been?"

How have I been? HOW HAVE I BEEN?! Even a simple question from this woman makes me want to rip her head off. "Cut the crap Nikki. Don't act like you like me in any way."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Dolph told me about your little encounter the other week, so I know everything you've been saying about me. What I want to know is why you would even talk to my boyfriend, never mind flirt with him. You have Cena for crying out loud."

She laughs. It reminds me of a witch's cackle, but that might just be because I hate her guts. "Oh sweetheart is that what he told you? That I was flirting with him? If anything he was the one all over me, but are you really surprised by that? I bet you don't even know just how much that boy was in love with me before you came along."

"Don't you dare accuse Dolph of flirting with you. I know him better than anyone, and he would have to be completely clueless to even think about liking you in that way again."

"Maybe he's completely clueless then, because I was there and you weren't. He was flirting with me. I guess you don't know him as well as you think you do, because that man is clearly not over me. You're just some rebound girl."

"Rebound girl?" Now I truly am ready to claw her eyes out. "How can I be a rebound girl when you guys have been broken up for a _looong_ time. Keep dreaming about him still having feelings for you, but it isn't gonna happen. Oh, and you're little plan to make me turn against him because you think I'm going to believe this BS isn't working. I can see straight through you."

"Believe what you want to believe honey. I think we both know who the more superior and preferable woman is out of the two of us. Little clue as to who that is, she actually looks like a woman, not a 14 year old school girl."

I've heard enough. Just when I thought I couldn't hate her any more. I get ready to lunge at her until I feel a large pair of arms around my waist scooping me up and off to the side. It's Big E. Nikki scurries off down the hall at the sight of the large male and now I'm really ticked off.

"What the hell E? Why did you stop me from going after her? That bitch deserved an ass kicking!"

"I was stopping you from making a mistake AJ. Your match is up soon, so focus on that and not her!"

I shoot the dirtiest look to E and storm off to the curtain to wait for my match. I am fuming. How dare she say things like that about my Dolph! She has no right even being here if her so called boyfriend isn't here. And speaking of that, why the hell is she talking about Dolph liking her again if she's with someone else!? I want to try and escape E's watchful eye and go chase her to slap her unfortunately pretty face. God help Paige tonight, as she's about to feel the full force of my fury.

* * *

**Chapter update just before raw. Reviews make me happy. ;)**


	29. Chapter 29

Dolph's pov

**Saturday 2****nd**** March – 7:10 pm**

Kalamazoo. Have I ever had a good time in Kalamazoo? I don't think so. The last time I was here quite a few months back now, I went to a club with Zack and he got so drunk that he started a fight with a gang of about 10 guys. Luckily we managed to escape before things escalated, but not before they punched Zack square in the face. Hopefully my current time in Kalamazoo will be better than the last. So far it's been good as me and AJ have spent a few days in this super luxurious hotel spending some quality time together. Everything is always better when I'm around the little spitfire.

Tonight should definitely be good for me and the rest of the trio. I'll be having a tag match later with Big E against team hell no, and my girl is about to have a match against one of the brightest prospects in NXT, Paige. I'm over the moon about the fact that AJ gets to go back in the ring a little more than usual. She may not admit it to me, but I can tell that she misses competing. She's an extremely talented diva, so why wouldn't she miss it? I think that may be the only drawback to our group. But at least she'll be able to showcase her talents and prove why she's the best female wrestler in this company. I would say she's the female version of me, and that's why we work so well together.

I pick up my blue money in the bank briefcase and head out of my locker room. Just as I'm about to close the door behind me, I see a familiar figure walking rather rapidly towards me. _Nikki. _She keeps looking over her shoulder as she's moving so it looks like she's hiding from someone.

"Nikki? What the hell are you doing here?"

"Oh god, it's the other half of the lame couple asking me questions. Why can't you people just be a little friendlier when you greet me?"

"Couple? You've spoken to AJ?"

"Ah yes. Your precious little doggy just tried to attack me!"

AJ tried to attack Nikki? I'm not going to lie, that brings a slight smile to my face. I know AJ can fly off the rails from time to time, but I refuse to believe that she wasn't provoked to do something to Nikki.

"What did you say to her to make her want to attack you?"

"What makes you think that I said anything? I was actually being nice to her and then she turned into a complete psycho bitch. I'm serious Dolph, you need to put that thing on a leash."

"I'm warning you Nik, you insult my girlfriend like that one more time and I swear to God.."

"Oh whatever, your threats don't mean anything to me. I know that you could never hurt me."

"Nikki, you didn't answer my question. What are you doing here? Your little boy scout boyfriend isn't here tonight so I can't think of any other reason for you being here."

A smirk appears on her face. That smirk **never **means something good is about to happen. "You're right Dolph, John isn't here tonight, but he's not the reason why I'm here. About half an hour ago I had a meeting with Vince. That's why I'm here."

"Why did you have a meeting?"

"Are you really that stupid? Why do you think? I had a meeting with him to discuss two contracts to sign a couple of former divas."

".._what?" _No. Please, I hope what she's about to say isn't true.

"WWE have just re-signed the Bella twins. It looks like we're going to be seeing each other a lot more often.. _Ziggy."_

I cannot believe it. They're back? I can feel my fists start to ball up without me even realising. _No Dolph, remember to never ever hit a woman under any circumstances. Even if she is the devil in human form. _This means that Nikki's going to be around on a permanent basis. Oh my god what is AJ going to say about all this? Oh hell, she might already know about it and that's why she tried to attack her. I've gotta go see her.

"Did you tell AJ that you're back?"

"No I didn't get around to telling her because she was too busy trying to launch herself at me until your little bodyguard stopped her. Why don't I let you do the honours on that one, I'm sure she will be thrilled to hear that I'm going to be around a lot more often."

I barge past her and start to run down the halls. I need to see AJ before her match so we can talk about this and I need to know why she tried to attack Nikki.

Why? Why does she have to come back? I don't understand the point in bringing back divas who left because they were fed up of the company, especially when creative doesn't know what to do with the current divas. Oh god, I can imagine them creating a rivalry between Nikki and AJ. I'm 100% sure that match wouldn't be pretty.

I stop near the curtain and scan around to see if I can see AJ anywhere. She's nowhere in sight which is odd because she usually hangs around here before her matches. Just then I hear the tune of 'let's light it up' fill the arena and I know I'm already too late. This talk is going to have to happen after her match. I just hope she doesn't take too much of her aggression out on Paige.

* * *

**7:28pm**

I managed to watch AJ's match from the back. She really is damn good in the ring, it's a shame she's not used more for the divas matches on TV. Some would say that's because of me and the fact that all she is now is my girlfriend, but that's not true. I'd love her to go out and compete in more matches like the one she was just involved in, but some idiot in creative has decided not to utilise her incredible in ring abilities.

I can see her make her way through the curtain. She looks infuriated. I'm going to have to try and be gentle when I touch up on the subject of Nikki around her. The absolute last thing that I want to do is increase her rage.

"Babe, I watched your match. You were amazing."

She still has a scowl on her face but I lean down and kiss her on the cheek anyway. She does smile slightly, but then her facial expression instantly goes back to being pissed. "Thanks."

"What's the matter?"

"Earlier I.. You know what, it doesn't even matter."

"Nikki. That's what's the matter, isn't it? Babe I've got something to tell you concerning her."

"You've seen her too? Why do I get the feeling that I don't want to hear whatever you've got to say about her?"

"Maybe because you know it's not the best of news."

"Dolph, AJ.. Our tag match has been moved forward so we're going on next. Let's go."

As Big E says that to us, I hear the words 'I'm here to show the world' play. So much for wanting to talk things through with AJ. I look down at her and she seems to look even angrier than before. I really don't like seeing her like this.

"Dolph, we'll talk about this on the way to Cleveland later."

* * *

**11:31 pm**

We've been sat in the car for ten minutes and there's just silence. We haven't spoken a word to each other since before my tag match. I hate being this way with AJ, but I'm scared to say anything to her right now considering that she's in a foul mood. I will avoid having another argument with the woman I love at any cost.

"I think I'm calm enough to hear what you have to say about her Dolph."

Calm. That's what she says she is. I glance over to her in the passenger seat and she does seem a little less tense, but that doesn't mean she couldn't snap at any second once I've told her that Nikki will be back on the roster.

"Are you sure?"

"Don't say things like that Dolph, because you're making me more nervous to hear what you have to say. Just tell me please."

"Okay. Nikki and Brie are back on the roster. Nikki signed a contract earlier today and that's why she was at the arena."

I glance over at her again and see that she now has her eyes closed and is taking in deep breaths.

"I expected you to say that."

"So wait, you're not going to get angry about it?"

"No. When I saw her earlier on today, I had a feeling that might be why she was here so I've had time since then to digest it all. I can't stand her for everything that she's done to you in the past and for the things she's said about me, but I'll just have to deal with seeing her all of the time. I mean, you do it with Cena right? I should be able to do the same with Nikki."

I'm in shock. I totally expected her to at least get a little annoyed or maybe shout about how much she hates her guts. But instead she's being totally understanding.

"That makes sense. So, are you going to tell me why you nearly attacked her earlier?"

Even though I'm trying to concentrate on the road, I can feel her staring at me. "She said that when you two were talking a little while back that you were flirting with her. She also said that she was a more preferable woman than me and that I'm just your rebound from her."

"Are you for real? Babe, please please _please_ tell me you don't believe any of that crap?!"

She takes a long pause before replying. Her brief silence scares me because now I'm starting to think that she's contemplating whether she believes her or not. "No I don't believe her. I know that she's just being malicious and trying to turn me against you for whatever reason. But, the stuff she was saying really got to me. It was like she was doing anything to remind me that you were in love with her, and I don't even want to think about that."

I'm still trying to focus on the road but I notice her wipe a tear away from her eye. That does it. There's no way in hell that I'm going to let her cry over this. I park my car on the side of the road so I can try to cheer her up.

"Babe, please don't cry. You know I can't stand to see you upset."

"I'm not upset, it's just.. it's everything you know?"

"What do you mean everything?"

"Just everything. All the bad stuff that's happened in the past few months I just feel like it all got to me tonight, and I have _so_ much hatred for Nikki. It's not even like I'm really mad about what she said about me to you, but the way she ended things with you and hurt you so badly is what gets to me. And I guess I'm jealous of her being your first love instead of me, because you're mine and I don't.. I.."

She can't even finish her sentence because she has broken into a fit of sobs. It's heart breaking to see her like this. I pull her into my arms so I can at least try to make her feel better.

"AJ I want you to listen to me. I love you so much babe, and believe me when I say that I love you a whole lot more than I ever did Nikki. We're going to avoid her as much as we can and if she even tries to start causing trouble we're just going to ignore her and get on with our lives, okay? We're going to stop all of this getting upset stuff and we're going to be the strongest force in the WWE. We're both going to become champions one day and me and you? I meant it the other day when I said that we are going be together for a long time and possibly forever."

She's now only inches away from my face and I can see a glimmer of hope and happiness in her brown orbs. "Do you mean all of that Dolph?"

"Yes. I love you AJ, and only you. We're going to make things better for us, no more losing streaks and being depressed. And it all starts tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? What are you talking about?"

"I'll explain it all to you later babe."

And I know AJ is going to fall in love with my little plan.

* * *

**So Nikki and Brie are back in WWE and it kind of fits perfectly for my story. I may appear to hate Nikki because she's the bad guy in this fic, but I'm actually kinda glad that her and Brie Bella are back. Chapter 30 up soon! (hopefully :P)**


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30! I didn't think I'd make this story that long! Anyway, thank you to everyone who keeps reading this and also to those who always review. It's so good to read what you think of the chapters, especially when I have no motivation to keep on writing. This chapter includes both points of view and with that, happy reading! :)**

* * *

AJ's pov

**Sunday 3rd march **

"Dolph is going to propose to me tonight."

_"What?!" _

There is a long silence on the other end of the line. I suppose saying that my boyfriend is going to propose to me tonight is a pretty big bombshell to drop on your best friend over the phone.

"Dolph is going to propose? How do you know? AJ spill the beans now!"

"Okay Kait calm down! Tonight Dolph is going to propose to me right before his match. Oh, and he's also going to do it right in front of his parents."

"Are you for real?! Hold on, why would he tell you he's going to propose and why would he do it in front of an audience? I thought you two weren't telling everyone that you were in a legit relationship? I can't believe I'm missing this I.."

I giggle to myself whilst Kaitlyn is losing her mind over this. I should probably be fully honest with her.

"Woah, seriously champ you need to cool it. He's not proposing to me for real. He's going to get down on one knee, work the crowd a little bit and then he's going to offer me his wristband. It's our own little unique way of getting some heat from the crowd."

"Oh my god, girl you just nearly gave me a heart attack! I would have just died if you were getting engaged and I wasn't there to congratulate you or anything."

"Don't worry, I swear it's not for real. Dolph came up with the plan and he explained it all to me last night. We're trying to do all that we can to make a bigger impact as a couple."

"That's certainly sweet of him to come up with something like that. And hey, you mentioned that he'll be doing it in front of his parents, so I take it you're finally going to be meeting them?"

"Actually, he introduced me to them last night, well technically this morning seeing as we got to his mom's house at about 3am."

**Flashback**

_"Ziggy, isn't it kind of rude to be coming into the house this early in the morning? I don't want to end up waking everybody up."_

_"Don't worry about it babe, I bet you anything that my mom and dad are awake. They would probably stay up all night just to greet me. It has something to do with them only being able to see me a few times per year."_

_I'm not convinced that's true. I don't doubt that they love their son and want to see him, but to stay up until 3am? I'm sure normal people don't do that. What if we do wake them up and they end up hating me for it? I so badly want to make a good impression on his parents and hope that they don't think he's made a big mistake by going out with me. I've had a crappy night after all that Nikki stuff and I've only just cheered up from it all. It's taken Dolph nearly the full four hour journey from Kalamazoo to Cleveland to make me happy again. _

_"I hope you're right Dolph. The last thing I want to do is wake your parents up."_

_"Look at you, you're practically shaking! Are you still nervous about meeting them?"_

_"Yes! I don't make good first impressions with parents okay, and you mean more to me than any guy I've ever been with so this means I really have to make a good impression!"_

_He smiles at me and puts his muscular arms around my shoulders. "My parents are going to adore you. In fact, they already do and they haven't even met you yet! They know how strongly I feel about you so that makes them like you even more. You have absolutely nothing to worry about babe."_

_I take comfort in what he tells me. I feel slightly more confident knowing that I have his support and by also knowing that his parents apparently 'adore' me. "Okay Ziggy, let's meet the family."_

_He leaves a quick kiss on my lips and then knocks on the door. I feel a few nervous butterflies flutter around in the pit of my stomach but thankfully it isn't as bad as before. The white door before me opens and I see a woman clad in a white robe. _

_"Dolph! It's been such a long time son!"_

_His mother instantly pulls him into an embrace before he even gets the chance to say hello. It's cute to see him this way and I can definitely tell he's a momma's boy._

_"Hey mom, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend. This is AJ."_

_"Hey there AJ, I've been dying to meet you! This one hasn't been able to shut up about you whenever I've been on the phone to him. I'm Jane by the way. Here, let me take a look at you." She takes hold of my hand and pulls me into the lovely home. She then looks me up and down. "Wow, Dolph you've really picked a beautiful young girl! I can see why you're so smitten with her."_

_I blush upon hearing Jane call me beautiful. She seems like such a sweet woman. _

_"Mom, where's dad? I want him to introduce him to AJ too."_

_"Oh, he fell asleep a few hours ago. He wanted to stay awake to see you but he was so tired. He said he will see you both in the morning. Anyway, AJ I know it's late but come into the kitchen and we'll have a quick chat and get to know each other. I want to know more about the lady who has captured my son's heart."_

_I think for the first time ever I've managed to make a good impression._

"I ended up staying up until 4am talking with his mother and also met his father earlier on today. They were so sweet to me! Can you believe it Kait? A guy that I care about has parents that genuinely like me!"

"Aw AJ, I knew they would. I'm happy for you!"

"Thanks Kait. Hey, you're the one that called me up so what do you want my dear best friend?"

"I uh.. called to see if you knew about the Bellas."

"That they've re-signed? Yeah I know about that. I found out last night."

"I found out about it this morning. Apparently they're making their return in a segment with me at some point soon. How do you feel about it all?"

"I'm not thrilled about it, obviously. I actually nearly ended up in a fight with Nikki last night because she was being such a bitch, but I have to accept that her and Brie are back. I feel a lot better about it now than I did last night because Dolph assured me that everything's going to be fine and as long as we avoid her things should be okay."

"It's good to hear that you're being so positive about things. I thought you would be livid with the idea of Nikki being there constantly."

"I was yesterday, but it's not like I'm going to let her take Dolph away from me and I'm not going to let whatever crap she has to say get to me anymore. I shouldn't really be paranoid about her and Dolph anyway, she has Cena! What I'm to do is focus on my relationship with Ziggy and not care about whatever Nikki Bella says or does."

* * *

Dolph's pov

Tonight is going to be good. Back in my home town of Cleveland Ohio. It's been a nice day back here and introducing AJ to my parents was pretty entertaining to watch. My mom of course fell in love with her the moment she saw her, and I knew that she would. Today all my mom has been doing is showing her photos of me as a kid, showing her the trophies that I won and try to know more about her. My dad on the other hand didn't say that much to her but told me that he thought she was a keeper. I agree with that one.

Tonight AJ and I are going to surprise them with my proposal idea. We're going to surprise the whole Cleveland crowd and right when they just believe me and AJ are going to get married, boom. I give her my pink wrist band instead. Genius. I want to do it to work the crowd a bit, I want to prove to the guys in the back that we can entertain and more than anything I want to see the look on both of my parents face when they realise it's not a real proposal.

I can feel Big E's presence next to me before he even has to say anything. That's probably the advantage of him being such a huge human being.

"Dolph, you ready for tonight?"

"Yeah course I am E. I've been stretching for the past 20 minutes so I'm good to go. Hey, have you seen AJ?"

"Last I saw her she was on the phone to Kaitlyn I think. By the way, are you okay man? You seem a little tense today."

Tense? I thought I seemed fine. "I'm doing okay. This whole thing with the Bella's returning and Nikki being around has been tough lately, especially for AJ. I'm happy that we're moving on from that now and we're just going to ignore the fact that they're back."

"Um, Dolph? I don't know if AJ told you about this or not, but I'm the one who told her that you were talking to Nikki a while back and that's why she started getting suspicious of you guys."

"What? Are you kidding me?"

"I didn't say anything bad, all I said was that I saw you and her talking, that's it."

"So wait, you're telling me that if you hadn't have mentioned to her that I was talking to Nikki, then maybe she wouldn't have gotten so suspicious and annoyed. She might have not argued with me on Valentine's day. E do you realise what you did?"

I really shouldn't be yelling at him. I mean, the guy could lay me out in two seconds flat and he was just being honest with AJ about me and Nikki talking, but if he hadn't have said anything, me and AJ would have been fine on Valentine's day. She might have not ended up crying in my arms in the car last night and possibly everything could have been okay.

"There's no need to raise your voice okay, all I was doing was saying what I saw."

"Hey guys is everything okay?"

AJ. Oh man, I hope she didn't hear all of our conversation. I need to stay positive around her to make sure she doesn't get upset again. I glance up to E and he sends me a look as if to say it's best not to let AJ know that we were about to start arguing.

"Yeah babe, everything's fine. You look amazing tonight if I haven't told you so already."

"Aw thank you. I saw your parents out there in my match against Paige. They're on the very front row in the corner."

"I thought they would be. I think we should do the proposal right in front of them. I'm dying to see my mom's reaction to it."

"She's going to kill you. She told me earlier today that she can't stand surprises!"

"Look at you thinking you know everything about my mom after one day! Didn't I tell you that you two would get along great?"

"Yes you did, and you were right. I love your mom, she's like a more feminine version of you. I've got to tell you though, I'm still kind of nervous to go back out there in front of her and your dad. I just wrestled a match not long ago and I was a wreck!"

"Why? You perform in front of millions every single week."

"I know I do, but it's your parents! I guess I still want to make a good impression, and I didn't make the best one tonight because I lost my match."

I put my arm around her shoulder and kiss her forehead. At time her insecurities can bug me, but I do find it cute about her. They make her who she is and I love everything about AJ Lee. "Babe, they love you. I love you. You don't have to make a good impression anymore, because you already made one when you first met them. Okay?"

"Okay. With you by my side I guess I don't feel as nervous anymore."

"Good to hear. Now I think it's time to go steal the show like the three of us do every single week."

Both AJ and E smile at me and then my entrance theme fills the Cleveland arena. It's time to propose to my girl.


	31. Chapter 31

**It's the 'proposal' chapter! I've been wanting to write this since I first saw the video a few weeks ago. If you haven't already watched it I suggest that you do. Enjoy!**

* * *

Dolph's pov

"AJ, can you come here for a second please?"

The setting is perfect. I couldn't have asked for anything better. The crowd are hot right now because they love their home town guy Dolph Ziggler. I've pandered to them and told them all that yes, I'm from Cleveland Ohio, and as expected I got a cheap pop for that. I built anticipation for the events that are about to take place and added the extra information in that my parents are sat in the front row. AJ makes her way over to me looking as cute and utterly adorable as ever. She really knows how to work my 'stealing the show' t-shirt.

"Um.." Pretending to stumble over my words. I need to do all that so I can to make them think that I'm incredibly nervous because by now, a lot of the crowd are expecting me to get down on one knee at any minute. I briefly look around at some of the crowd and take a deep breath in preparation for my brilliant idea to be set into motion. To the crowd I may look nervous as hell but I'm honestly trying to stop myself from laughing maniacally like an evil genius. "These..These last couple of weeks have been um.. so amazing and.. will.."

Yes, my time spent with AJ has been amazing. Every single moment. That's all true. Even the bad stuff has been remarkable. What the audience doesn't realise is that it has been much longer than just a few amazing weeks with my girl. _So _much longer. But of course, they don't need to know that. I catch my breath and then get down on one knee. The response from everyone in attendance is unbelievable.

I look down at the floor really to just waste a little time. Hearing everyone's cheers and some of the 'NO NO NO' chants is like music to my ears. You can bet your ass that I'm proud of getting this reaction. I look towards my mom who is pretty much a picture at this point. I so wish I had my camera with me. She's clapping like a lunatic at the sight of me on bended knee. _This_ was exactly what I wanted.

"AJ. Pumpkin." The smile stitched onto my girlfriend's face right now is mesmerising. She looks so blissfully happy that no-one would even guess that she's in on my little plan. If I ever proposed to her for real and she looked this delighted, then I would be a very content man to say the least. **_If I ever proposed for real.._**

The thought of asking AJ to marry me starts to swirl around in my head. What if I did propose to her for real? What if I decided to just drop the idea of giving her my wrist band and proposed to her legitimately right here. I drop my head to try and get rid of the thoughts. I shouldn't be thinking this, I should have my mind fully focused on what I'm doing now. Suddenly the crowd's 'no' chants are irritating me. "Will you.. just for a second, this is **real**. Can you hang on for a second?"

I look back up to AJ to see that she's not even fazed by the crowd but has her eyes solely fixed on mine. "AJ, babe. You.. you mean the world to me, you are the wind beneath my wings and I.. I just wanna s.." Okay, that was a little cheesy for me. Who says 'you are the wind beneath my wings' anymore? I think the cheesiness what makes this whole thing much better though. I glance down at the black box in my hand. At this very moment in time, I kind of wish it was more than just a wristband in there for AJ.

"Will you.. make me the happiest superstar in the world and will you.. AJ." Here it comes. The big moment. The moment that has created an air of tension in the arena. The moment that has my mother biting her nails.

"..Wear my pink wristband?" I extend my arm out to offer her my wristband with the initials 'DZ' on it. AJ looks positively ecstatic. Despite all of this being staged I love seeing her like this. She takes the band out of the box and slides it onto her dainty little wrist. Her beautiful smile must be a mile wide.

"YES! YES!"

"YEAH SHE SAID YES!" At this point she jumps into my arms. I spin her around and enjoy this moment where I've managed to fool everybody and both AJ and I are joyful. It's a damn good feeling. "SHE SAID YES! **SHE SAID YES!**"

"And if any of you idiots thought I was getting married that's exactly what you are, idiots, thank you very much."

I drop the mic onto the floor and walk over to AJ. She's laughing her precious little head off at everything we've just done. She shows of the wrist band and then leans up to whisper something in my ear. "Just look at your poor mum, I think she thought we were legit getting engaged!"

I look behind me and her and my dad are shaking their heads at me but still laughing about it. I've always wanted to entertain since I was 5 years old, and to see that I even played those two makes me realise that both AJ and I achieved what we set out to do. I turn back to the petite diva and her eyes are sparkling under the lights above our heads. Just when I thought she couldn't look any more gorgeous. Tonight may have not been a real proposal, but I know in my heart I would have no objection to her being my wife someday.

* * *

"Dolph, are we okay man?"

"Yeah, E I'm sorry. I freaked out on you a little bit before the match but I wasn't really expecting to hear you say that you're the one who told AJ about Nikki, that's all. But you were being honest with her and I can't blame you for that."

I had to apologise to Langston. It was uncalled for to shout at him earlier for being honest. At the end of the day it's my fault that I got into that argument about Nikki with AJ, and if I had have told her that Nikki had spoken to me that day, we would have never fought. It was never E's fault.

"Okay, well I was just making sure that we're cool."

"We are E. No worries man." I offer a fist bump to E that he reciprocates and then he walks towards the door. Before he leaves though, he turns to me again.

"By the way Dolph, the proposal was a great idea. You really had the fans and even myself going. At one point I really thought you were going to ask her to marry you."

I can't prevent a smile spreading across my face. It's even better to know that I had Big E going at one point. "Thanks, and who knows. Maybe one day I will ask her to marry me. I'm not too sure that I'd do it in front of the fans though."

He laughs and then exits my locker room. I drop down to the bench and analyse everything that's taken place tonight. I was in another tag match with Langston against Daniel Bryan and Kane, and we had a great match. E is quite good in the ring, and I definitely wouldn't complain if we had to do more tag matches together in the future. Perhaps we could become the tag team champions?

The main thing that happened tonight that won't seem to escape my mind is the proposal. I didn't expect to start contemplating asking AJ to be my wife for real. Although in a way I don't really know why I'm surprised that I have that thought. I love AJ, that's what you're supposed to do when you love someone. You're supposed to imagine proposing and sharing your life together as a married couple. I suppose it's just I've never been the kind of guy who would want to get married one day. Wrestling has been my passion since I was a kid, and things such as settling down never seemed to interest me, but now I have AJ it's all starting to change.

There's a knock on my door and from the lightness of the tapping I can tell that it's the girl who's on my mind.

"Come in babe."

"Babe? Did you know it was me or do you call everyone that?"

"I'm psychic, I knew it was you. Why would I call anyone else other than my girl babe?"

She doesn't even reply straight away, but dashes over to me and sits on my lap. "You were amazing out there. I feel like I always say that to you, but it's true. And I also don't mean just inside the ring, but your little fake proposal went according to plan and the audience were hot for it."

"Thanks babe, but you.." She silences me with a kiss. She wraps her arms around my neck and leaves a few more kisses on my lips before slowly pulling back and smiling. She's too beautiful for words.

"I'm sorry Ziggy, what were you going to say?"

"Ha, well before you rudely interrupted me," I say that with a cheeky wink. "I was going to say you were awesome out there too."

She starts playing with my hair. I _love_ it when she does that. "I was just playing my part at being the girlfriend to the best superstar in WWE. It didn't even need any acting! You do realise that your mom is going to give you hell for what we did tonight though, don't you?"

"Yeah, she'll probably tell me off for messing with her mind but knowing her she'll quickly end up saying she thought it was funny."

"She might end up badgering you to legit pop the question to, in her words, 'a beautiful young girl'."

AJ laughs after saying that, implying that she was being sarcastic. I don't think she knows she was actually being truthful. My mom **will **start pestering me about proposing to AJ because she genuinely adores her. Just another reason why maybe I should do it.

"Do you remember how not so long ago I said that I want us to be together maybe forever?"

"How could I forget."

"Well, I don't know how you were feeling out there tonight, but I was starting to think about what it would be like to really propose to you, and getting married to you. It made me realise that I _do_ want to be married to you."

She's shocked. Maybe I was a _little_ too forward with saying that. What if she freaks out on me again like when I told her I loved her? Damn, I can't bear it if we have to have another argument because yet again I'm taking things too fast.

"And when I say that I mean _way_ into the future. I mean, we haven't been together that long so don't get scared and think that I'm going to start rushing things by proposing to you right now."

She presses her head to mine but doesn't say anything. A part of me is scared that she won't reply to me, but knowing that she hasn't gone into instant crazy chick freak out mode is settling. After a brief period of silence, she replies.

"Why are you so good to me?"

_"What?"_

"I mean it, what did I do to deserve someone who is this good to me?"

"I don't know what you're talking about AJ, you deserve the best."

"Okay so I deserve the best. But you're even better than that. Never in a million years would I have imagined that you would even think about marrying me. Just know that I love you. I love you _so_ much."

I don't think she'll ever realise just how happy I am to hear her say that. We've come a long way since the night that we had our first big argument. So much has happened since then and every day I feel like I love her just that little bit more if that's possible. I can see tears begin to form in her large eyes.

"Babe, I've seen you cry far too much for my liking lately so please, stop it!"

"I'm sorry! These are happy tears, I swear. The way you make me feel is indescribable. I have this feeling that no matter what happens between us, we're still going to be together and you don't understand how good that feels."

"I feel the same way AJ. Excuse me for sounding like a total sappy boyfriend again but I mean it when I say this. Me and you. **Forever**. Yeah?"

"Yes. Me and you **forever**."

* * *

**I had to make this into a cute chapter with loads of love in it. Let me know your thoughts! :)**


	32. Chapter 32

AJ's pov

**Monday 4th March**

His words were "_It made me realise that I do want to be married to you." _He wants to marry me. **Me. **The messed up crazy chick who has played with his mind and emotions far too many times. After all of it, he still wants to be with me **forever. **That's what he said**. **Maybe he's the one who needs the psychiatric help that so many people said that I needed.

I love him. I love every single intricate detail about him. And when I thought I didn't have the capacity in my heart to love him any more, he tells me he wants to marry me some day. If perfect really existed then I'm sure that Dolph would be the definition of it. Everything still feels so surreal though. Just over three months ago, I had frazzled his brain by interfering in his match at TLC without him knowing about it. I thought that disrupting the biggest match of his career would make him hate me if he didn't already. But no, he wanted to talk to me. He wanted to be a part of my life after a few years of barely talking to each other. He's insane.

I'm glad he didn't hate me after everything I did. I'm glad that somewhere along the line he fell in love with me, because I don't know what I'd do without him now. I was beginning to feel totally lost in the world and unsure of what to do in life, but when I started to become close with Dolph again, things seemed to go back to normal. Hell, if it wasn't for Dolph I wouldn't have Kaitlyn as my best friend again. I owe him more than he knows.

I look at my white Iphone that is on the table in front of me. I was supposed to call Kait after Dolph and E's match last night, but after Dolph was being the sweetest man on the planet, I forgot about everything else. I pick up the phone and scroll through my contacts until I reach her number.

"Hello, AJ?" She sounds sleepy. Damn, it's only 9am I probably woke her up. Oops.

"Kait did I wake you up? I'm sorry."

"Yeah you did, but it's fine. I've been waiting for your call all night anyway. What's up?"

"Where do I begin, uhh.. Well, the proposal went great."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. We totally fooled everyone, it was pretty fun. But, that wasn't the best thing that happened to me last night"

"Please continue to tell me about that."

I try to stop myself from smiling just thinking about it, but I can't. I'm in a dream world right now. "Well, after the match I went to his locker room and we were talking and get this. He said that while he was out there pretending to propose, he realised that he wanted to marry me for real. Can you believe him?"

"Wow AJ. That's huge! Did not think Dolph was that kind of guy."

"I knew he was sweet but last night was just.. I can't even describe to you how happy I am Kait."

"I'm really happy for you AJ."

Kaitlyn says that she's happy for me, but the tone of her voice says differently. I thought that she sounded weird because she was sleepy, but now I'm starting to think something's up. "Kait, is something wrong?"

"No not at all, I'm fine."

"You don't sound fine. Come on champ, what's up?"

I can hear her sigh down the phone before replying to me. "Zack's been really weird lately. I called him last night because obviously I'm not at the events with you guys this weekend, and he seemed really pissed off. I don't know if I should be worried or not."

That's odd. Zack is usually a happy go lucky guy, especially now Kaitlyn's his girlfriend. I never got the chance to talk to him this past weekend as I was always with Dolph. "I'm sure it's nothing major Kait. You'll be seeing him later on for raw won't you? Just talk to him about it then."

"It might not be anything but if something's ever wrong with him he usually talks to me about it, but this time he hasn't. I don't know, I'm probably just being the paranoid girlfriend. Don't let me ruin your blissful mood."

"Hey, that's what best friends are for. Anyway, I've gotta go. I need to take Nacho for a walk and then catch a flight for raw. I'll see you later at the arena."

"Bye future Mrs. Ziggler."

I hang up the phone and then look over to my little Chihuahua with the biggest smile on my face. "Did you hear that Nacho? I am the future ."

The small dog looks at me dumbfounded. He doesn't have a clue how happy his mama is. This day is going to be good. Nothing is going to ruin this mood.

* * *

**11pm**

Dolph isn't in his locker room. Strange. Normally after his matches he hangs out in his locker room and waits for me to arrive. I hope he's not upset with losing to the Miz. He loses all the time, and as of late he's become really upset with it, but I think for him losing to Miz is a big blow for even him to take.

"AJ, can we talk?"

I don't believe it. After around three months of barely uttering a word to each other, this man turns up at Dolph's locker room and asks _me _if I want to talk. John Cena. Eugh.

"What do we have to talk about?"

He walks into the locker room and shuts the door behind him. I'm not sure why but I've become really nervous at the fact he has shut the door so that no-one out in the hallway can hear us. "I just wanted to talk to you because we haven't had a one to one conversation since the day of TLC."

"There's a reason for that John. I pushed you off a ladder, remember? That was my hint to you that I didn't really want to speak to you. Ever."

"AJ, don't okay?" He takes a few steps forward so he's a lot closer to me. "I didn't come here to argue or anything like that, but I just wanted to talk."

"No, my guess is you came here to talk to Dolph, not me, because why else would you come to _his _locker room?"

"No, you're wrong. I knew you'd be in here. I did in fact come to talk to you about a few things, not Dolph. Can you please give me that chance?"

He's pleading with me to talk. His eyes are a crystal blue and are firmly locked onto mine. A few months ago, I would have melted under his gaze. But now? I feel nothing. Maybe that proves just how strong my feelings for Dolph have become. "Fine. Say whatever you have to say and then you can go."

"Right. First off I just want to say that everything that happened at TLC, even though it was quite a while back now, I don't blame you for doing what you did. I was a jerk, and I didn't tell you I was with Nikki and I lead you on, I know that. I'm sorry."

He actually seems genuine. That surprises me. I should probably be happy that he's finally apologised, despite it being a few months too late, but I'm not. He has irritated me because no matter what he always has to be this perfect boy scout. But he's not perfect. Dolph is perfect. John is the guy who really hurt me. Now someone please tell me who should be the poster boy for the company?

"Fine. Apology accepted. Is there something else you wanted to say to me?"

"Wow, you're being a bit harsh today AJ."

"I'm a bit harsh every day to the people I don't particularly like."

He laughs at me. Eugh. I hate that. "Okay then. The second thing I wanted to talk to you about was your relationship with Dolph. I'm a little bit worried about you."

Woah hold the god damn phone. He's worried about _me_?! What on earth does he have to be worried about my relationship for? I'm with a wonderful man who treats me with love and tenderness. I should be the one worried about him because he's trapped in a dead end relationship with that witch. I blatantly scoff at his pathetic words. "You're worried about me? Please indulge me on how you're worried about me when you have **never **given a damn about me."

"You can think that all you want AJ, but I do care about you. Look, I don't know if I'm supposed to say anything but Nikki told me something about Dolph. She told me about one of the main reasons she broke up with him, and that's why I'm worried about your relationship with him."

"Oh something that _Nikki _said is what has gotten you worried? I wouldn't bother John, because whatever comes out of her mouth is pure lies."

"You can say what you want about Nikki but something in my gut tells me that she isn't lying about this."

"John, please just spit it out already, I can tell that you're dying to. I have to go find Dolph soon anyway." His presence is annoying me so I just want him out of here.

"Nikki said that a reason for splitting her up with Dolph was because he has some anger issues. She said that he tends to lose his temper quite a lot, and it got to the point that she couldn't deal with it anymore."

I can't believe what I'm hearing. Is he being serious? Does he _actually _believe anything that Nikki Bella tells him?! I'm sure he cares about her or whatever but come on. Dolph is one of the sweetest guys I've ever met!

"Are you kidding me right now? Anger issues? John, wake up and smell the coffee. Can't you see what a total liar she is? I think I'd know about it if my boyfriend had anger issues."

"No, I'm sure she's being completely honest about this. Did Dolph tell you that they had a major bust up before they broke up?"

"Well, yeah.."

"See? Anger issues."

"Oh my lord, people have arguments all of the time, it doesn't mean they have anger issues. That's how most relationships end anyway. I'm sticking by my guess that Nikki is just stirring things up and lying to your face."

"AJ, when they were together I saw him get mad and argue with her a lot more than just once. And you were there when he grabbed me by my t-shirt and had me against the wall. I'm just worried that you're going to end up getting too serious with this guy and he'll end up hurting you like he did Nikki."

Lord, please give me strength to not punch this man in the face. "Hurt Nikki? No, it was the other way round. Dolph was distraught when those two broke up, and she is the one that broke up with him! Did you ever think that maybe he argued with her a lot because he wasn't happy with her? Again, a lot of couples do that John. Hell, I'm sure you did that with your wife before you two got divorced."

A fire has ignited in his eyes. I clearly said the wrong thing. "Don't go there AJ, I'm warning you. Look, all I'm trying to do is look out for you, there is really no need to be this way."

"But there is a need to be this way. You're telling me these things about my boyfriend that came from a known liar who, by the way, has been flirting with him. I don't think you are legitimately concerned about me for one single minute. Can you just leave John, I don't wanna hear any more crap tonight."

"I'm sorry for trying to be honest with you and for showing that I do in fact care. Dolph is an unlucky man for being stuck with you."

I watch him storm out of the room and he slams the door so hard behind him, he manages to make me jump. How dare he? Dolph having anger issues is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of! It seems as if you have a few arguments with someone or get mad every now and again and you suddenly need to go to anger management. Oh my gosh, _I'm _getting anger issues just thinking about it!

I pace up and down the room trying to control my rage at everything John has told me. I think what aggravates me the most is that he would believe Nikki when he's known Dolph a lot longer than her. He should know that he doesn't have any damn anger problem. I stop to take a few deep breaths. _Just breathe AJ._

There's a knock on the door and I assume it is John back to spew some more BS. I instantly twist round and yell, "WHAT?!"

But it's not John. It's Kaitlyn. And she has tears streaming down her face. I dash over to her side.

"Oh my god, Kait what's the matter?"

"It's Zack. He.. He broke up with me."

* * *

**Dun dun duuuuun! Chapter 33 coming up soon to explain why Zack and Kaitlyn split! :)**


	33. Chapter 33

AJ's pov

"Kait, go sit down and tell me all about it."

The sobbing diva's champion makes her way over to the bench whilst I shut the locker room door so no-one interrupts this best friend chat we're about to have. I'm in shock. Zack broke up with her? But they were so happy and in love! I can't believe it. Who in their right mind would break up with such an amazing girl? I walk over to Kaitlyn to take a seat next to her and comfort her. The poor girl's a complete wreck with mascara lines all the way down her face.

"Kaitlyn, please explain to me what's going on. What do you mean Zack broke up with you?"

"What do you think I..I mean? He split up with me around half..half an hour ago."

She's stuttering on her words and can barely talk properly from the crying. It's truly heart breaking to see her in this state. Note to self, kill Zack Ryder when I next see him.

"I know you're really upset right now Kait, I totally understand but I need you to go into a little bit more detail than that champ."

I put my arm around her frame and try to stop her from shaking. She takes a few deep breaths before talking to try and calm herself down. "You know how frustrated he's been lately because he's barely being used on TV and when he does get used it's just to job to some random guy?"

"Yeah, I know he's been angry with that for a while now."

"Well, last night he got extra frustrated with it. I don't know what set him off but he was so pissed, that's why I was worried when I was on the phone to you earlier today. Anyway, when I got to the arena tonight and went to go talk to him, he was in such a bad mood and.."

She breaks into tears again. Never in the years that I have known her have I seen her like this. "Come on champ, what happened after he was in a bad mood?"

"I tried to find out what was wrong with him and he snapped at me. So I left him on his own for the majority of raw, and about half an hour ago I went up to him and he started an argument with me for no reason at all! And then he told me how angry he was that me and Cody are doing segments with each other."

"He's mad about that? You can't help that creative decided that they want to put you two together. He should know the deal anyway, he got paired with Eve but they weren't together in real life."

"AJ, you're missing the point. It's Cody. Of all the men in the locker room, he would want me to be paired with Cody the least."

Oh. How could I forget? Zack _hates _Cody. It all happened a while ago. Basically Zack and Cody were in a match together and Cody botched a move in the match that seriously hurt Zack's neck. They ended up getting into this massive argument and it escalated into a brawl backstage. The two of them barely talk now but it's obvious they both still hate each other's guts. No wonder Zack's being weird about it.

"But this thing between you and Cody started a few weeks ago, why is he all of a sudden being weird about it now?"

"I don't know. Maybe it's just everything has gotten to him and he's letting his anger out. But, I didn't think he would actually break up with me."

"I'm still confused as to why he broke up with you though Kait? He got mad, you argued, why should that mean he has to break up with you?"

"Oh, I didn't tell you the main part." She looks down to her hands that have scrunched up tissues in them. "He.. uh.. said that he thinks something is going on with me and Cody in real life. Of course I told him that he's insane for thinking such a thing and then he said that he can't do this anymore. He told me that it's over between me and him and then he got in his rental and left."

He did what now?! If I wasn't shocked at hearing all of this stuff before, I'm certainly in shock now. He actually went so low as to accuse Kaitlyn of being with Cody behind his back? I had only just managed to like Zack, but now he's on my list of people who I want to push through a table. Right behind Nikki and John.

"I can't believe he would do such a thing! You do not deserve to be accused of that Kait, that is so out of order."

"I don't think he meant it when he said that about me being with him, but he's just so angry, he said it in the heat of the moment."

"This guy just broke up with you, is making you cry and accused you of something that is so unbelievably false it's un true, so don't even bother defending him."

She can't even disagree with me or continue to defend him. She just looks at me. Her face is pain stricken and her eyes are glassy and swollen. My best friend is the hybrid diva. She's the fearless diva's champion who happens to be the strongest person I know. But right now, she's a broken, fragile mess of a human being. This isn't right. It's usually the other way round with me being in a total state.

"Look, I'm sorry for being that blunt. I know that you love Zack. I know that you would do absolutely anything for him, so instead of ruining your makeup why don't you wait to talk to him. Like you said, it may have just all been said in the heat of the moment."

I'm honestly not sure about the whole deal with Zack and Kait, but I felt like I had to say something, anything just to try and make her a little happier. It sort of worked. She has a glimmer of hope in her eyes and seems to be cheering up. "Maybe. I'm sorry AJ for coming to you with my problems like this."

"Oh my gosh, are you serious? If you ever have a problem, especially something like this, I want you to come unload your problems on me okay? I'm your best friend! You would do the same thing for me."

"Yeah, I would. Hey, when I walked in here you looked pretty mad. What was the matter with you?"

She had to bring it up. I'd just gotten the whole John ordeal out of my mind. If I told her she can come tell me anything, I should probably give her the same in return. "Before you came in here, I had an argument with Cena. He managed to wind me up pretty bad but that doesn't matter anymore, we don't have to talk about it."

"It does matter, and if it got you wound up we should talk about it. What happened?"

"He came in acting all high and mighty and started saying that he doesn't blame me for pushing him off the ladder at TLC and that I had every right to."

"That was months ago. Why's he bringing it up now?"

"We haven't really spoken to each other much since it happened so I guess he wanted to clear it up." Now I'm the one that's looking down to my hands and feeling emotional. "He said that he's worried about my relationship with Dolph. He had the cheek to say he thinks Dolph has an anger problem and do you wanna bet on why he said that?"

"Because Nikki told him that?"

"Got it in one. I was so angry at him. He's known Dolph for years and yeah, they don't see eye to eye or anything but he should know that he doesn't have any damn issues with his anger. You don't think he has anger issues do you?"

I expect to hear her say something like "_Oh no AJ, Dolph does not have any issues with his anger at all! John and Nikki are just being pathetic. Don't let it get you down." _But she doesn't say that. She doesn't say anything like that. In fact, she's not saying anything at all.

"Kait? You don't.. _agree_ with him do you?"

"I don't know. I've never really thought he had an anger problem or anything like that. But now that you mention it.. I'm thinking back to how many times him and Zack have fallen out. It's always happened because Dolph has snapped at Zack."

"Oh, and you'd know that because you were there every single time the two of them fell out? Just because Zack told you that their fights happened because Dolph snapped at him doesn't mean it's necessarily true."

"You're right, I haven't been there every time those two have fallen out, but I have been there for a couple of those times and honestly, yeah he did seem to lose his temper for the tiniest of reasons. I honestly don't want to say this AJ, but maybe Nikki and John are right."

No. Just no. These words aren't coming out of her mouth. She can't really side with those two can she? She knows Dolph as well as I do and oh my god, everyone loses their temper! Besides, why is it all of a sudden everyone is saying this? Why has no-one ever mentioned this before?

"As if you agree with them! I don't need to hear this right now okay, I know my boyfriend better than anybody, and he does not.. You know what, I can't even finish that sentence because I'm tired of hearing and talking about it."

I get up from the bench and begin to pace the room for the second time tonight. Maybe this is my new relaxation method? Something manages to stop me in my tracks though. It's not an object of some kind, but instead it's a sound. It's the sound of laughter. Surprisingly enough, it's coming from the woman who was crying not two minutes ago.

"Why are you laughing?"

"Because this is funny. Look at us. Getting all stressed out and upset over our boyfriends. Well, in my case, ex-boyfriend. Look at what these men have brought us to. We used to be the chickbusters who kicked girls asses and didn't give a crap about guys. Even when we did go through rough patches with them, we never let it get to us this bad. It's laughable."

The girl's got a point. Neither of us allowed ourselves to get this worked up over men. We cared mainly about each other and this business. We didn't get totally lovesick on dudes and make our entire world revolve around them. Well, Kaitlyn kinda did with Dolph back in the day, but still, she never cared him half as much as I do.

"Yeah. I suppose it is laughable that we're like this. How did it get this way?"

"Because AJ, we fell in love. We can't help it."

My shoulders slump. _We fell in love._ I can't work out if that's a bad thing or a good thing. I extend my arms out in front of me as a sign to Kaitlyn that I want to hug her. She smiles at me and makes her way over to return the hug. When all is said and done, and no matter what happens in our lives, it's good to have her here. Kaitlyn isn't just my best friend, but she's also like my sister. I'm not sure what I would do without her.

"By the way, I don't think you should be calling Zack your ex-boyfriend yet. Go talk to him champ, I'm sure he'll welcome you back with open arms."

She pulls back from our friendly embrace and again I see that spark of hope in her eyes. "You really think so?"

"Yes. I do. I think I'm an expert on crazy, and he would be the craziest man alive to want to break up with you."

That manages to make her giggle and I can feel myself start to become a little happier than I was before. That is until I hear a loud bang from the door being slammed. I spin around and I'm shocked at the sight in front of me.

"Dolph! What the hell happened to you?!"

I run over to his side and place my hands on his face. His lip is bleeding and he has a dark purple circle forming around his left eye. "I'm sure you can guess babe. What do you think happened? I got into a fight." He seems pissed.

"I'm going to give you two some privacy. Thanks for the talk AJ."

I nod at Kaitlyn and watch her walk out of the room. As soon as she has shut the door behind her, I focus my attention back to Dolph. "What do you mean you got into a fight? Why? With who?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

He nudges past me and throws his briefcase on the bench. If he thinks he isn't going to tell me what on earth made him get into a fight then he has another thing coming.

"You're not getting off that easy. I am your girlfriend. You know, the one who loves and supports you. I think I have the right to know why my boyfriend has a cut lip and a black eye forming."

He turns around to look me dead in the eye. His blue eyes hold so many emotions right now. I can detect sadness, anger, hurt and frustration all in one gaze. "_Why_? Because I am not letting anyone talk about my girlfriend in a disrespectful way. And _with who_? **John fucking Cena**, that's who."

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**I did want to update yesterday because it was AJ's birthday but I had far too much to do. Hope you guys liked the chapter anyway. Reviews are cool. :)**


	34. Chapter 34

Dolph's pov

_Why isn't he answering his phone? According to some of the boys he just left the arena in a fit of rage. But Zack never gets angry. Something is really odd about this situation, and it doesn't make me feel good._

"_Hey, this is Zack Ryder. I can't come to the phone right now but please leave a message and I'll get back to you. Woo woo woo! You know it."_

_So he's switched his phone off too. That's even more weird. The man who is on his IPhone more than he's drinking bud light lime has for once switched off one of his most sacred possessions. I guess I'm just going to have to get back to the locker room, get ready and leave with AJ. _

_Before I can get into my locker room, someone happens to be leaving it. Someone who I would never want anywhere near my locker room. Or anywhere near the girl who I know is in there. John Cena. He walks down the hall and when he notices me, a scowl appears on his face. That's certainly a nice greeting from him. He nudges past me without even caring. I really can't stand this guy._

"_Woah, before you leave Cena, care to tell me what you were doing in there?"_

_I watch him turn around and now he's starting to laugh. "It doesn't matter why I was in there man."_

"_Of course it matters, I know AJ is in there and she can't stand you as much as I do, so I think you need to tell me."_

_He shakes his head and then continues to walk down the hall. I am not standing for this. I walk steadily behind him until we're out of the way of other people._

"_Hey Cena! Don't think that you can walk away from me just like that. Tell me what you were doing in my locker room where I know that my girlfriend is."_

_Again, he turns around and laughs. I don't know why this jerk thinks it's so funny that he was in my damn locker room. "I was in there having a very nice chat with your girl. You jealous?"_

"_Quit being a douchebag John and just spit it out."_

"_Not that it has anything to do with you but all I was doing in there was just clearing some stuff up with AJ. I didn't want there to be any more hate between us. But of course, she went full on psycho at me and started yelling so I had to get the heck outta there. I don't even know how you can cope with that one as your girlfriend."_

_John needs to stop and think about what he's saying before I end up punching him in the face. "Don't talk that way about her."_

"_Why not? It's true. You should probably call the men in white coats to come and collect that one, cause she ain't playing no character, she really is a crazy chick!"_

"_I'm serious John, do not talk about my girlfriend that way!"_

"_Or what? You gonna get mad? Lose your temper maybe? Wouldn't be the first time would it."_

_He's got that typical John boy smirk on his face. What does he mean by wouldn't be the first time would it? "What is that supposed to mean John?"_

"_We all know you have a tendency to fly off the handle."_

_Is he being serious? This guy talks so much crap it's unreal! "What kind of BS is that? I only ever get mad when it's necessary. Like right now for example, so I have no idea what you're talking about."_

"_Yeah well.. whatever. Get back to Cray-J Lee."_

_I can feel something inside of me snap. Calling her a name such as that is the final straw for me. No-one and I mean **no-one **talks about my girl that way. Before he can turn around to walk off again I push him against the wall. I can't even say anything to him in a retort to his pathetic name for AJ before he punches me square in the face. Well, he punches me in the eye to be more exact. Damn, that's going to bruise nicely._

_Before I can defend myself after the first punch, I feel another fist flying my way. This time it's in the mouth and already I'm sure I can taste blood. I stagger back from the blows and then look up to Cena. He looks quite smug after what he's done. Oh but he doesn't know that there is no chance in hell that I'm letting him get away with being such a dick._

_I launch myself at him and unleash a set of punches in his direction. Everything seems to be going blurry and I'm not quite sure if that's just because I'm so furious with him right now or because I can't see properly out of one eye. Before I know it, we're on the floor brawling it out and I'm not sure how long we've been doing it now. Fortunately, I have the upper hand on John but I can feel someone dragging me away from him. _

_I look around to see that four men have now appeared separate us. John's mouth is bloody like mine. I think I've inflicted more damage on him than he has on me. A swell of pride fills up within me but suddenly I realise.. beating up John may not be the best thing for my career._

"You got into a fight with John? Why would you do that?"

"I've already said AJ, no-one disrespects my girlfriend!"

"I don't care who the hell is disrespecting me Dolph, that does not mean you go around getting into fights. And with John Cena of all people! Are you stupid?"

Lovely. I defend her and now she's calling me stupid. "No AJ I'm not stupid, I was just doing the right thing."

There's a long pause. I can see in her face she's trying to contain her rage so she doesn't start an argument with me. "What did John say to disrespect me?"

"He said that you were a psycho. He said that I should call the men in white coats and he also gave you this pathetic little nickname, Cray-j Lee."

"Is that it? Dolph, if you're going to get into a fight with every guy who says stuff like that about me, then you might aswell just be fighting the entire WWE fanbase."

"You weren't there AJ, he said it so maliciously and had that godforsaken smirk on his face. Besides, he threw the first few punches."

"Did you provoke him?"

"No. I did push him into a wall first but that was only because he was deliberately saying things to wind me up. He deserved what he got!"

Now AJ is furious. She's got her head tilted to the side, her eyes are really wide and her arms are crossed. Good things aren't going to happen when she looks like this. "Are you going to tell that little story to Vince? Because I'm sure if you use those childish words he won't fire you. God, Dolph you don't even realise what a big mess you've just made not only for you but for me. Oh and I can't forget E! I wouldn't be surprised if he fired the three of us just because you got involved in a ridiculous fight with the company's golden boy."

"What the hell did you expect me to do AJ? Just stand back and allow John to say things like that? No, I'm sorry but I couldn't do that."

"Yes! That's exactly what I expect you to do! It's John Cena, he could get you fired in a heartbeat. You should know better than what I do that you don't go against him"

"Oh that's rich coming from the woman who pushed him off of a ladder! Am I being stupid again or something, because to me that's a perfectly good example of going against him. Hypocrite."

She looks slightly hurt at my hypocrite remark. Maybe I over stepped the mark with her, but all I was doing was defending her honour, why must she be this way with me? She starts to walk towards the door. Oh AJ, please don't walk out on me. I'm tired of you doing that.

"Woah woah woah, where do you think you're going?"

"I need to get out of here. It's just been one thing after another tonight. First John comes in and I end up arguing with him and then Kaitlyn comes in here crying her eyes out because she's broken up with Zack.."

"Kaitlyn and Zack have broken up? Is that why Zack left this place all hot and bothered earlier?"

"Yeah. That jerk had her bawling her eyes out in here not five minutes ago."

"Hey, that's my best friend that you're calling a jerk."

"Oh I'm sorry, am I disrespecting him? Wanna have a fight with me too?"

Speechless. That's what I am right now. Her sarcasm at wanting to have a fight somehow hurt more than Cena's punches. I look down to the floor and then notice drops of blood on my arm that has seemingly fallen from my mouth. I wipe the blood off my arm and then AJ makes her way over towards me. She wipes the blood away from my lip and I flinch slightly at her touch because of the stinging sensation where the cut is. I look deeply into her eyes and where the anger used to be, I can now only detect sorrow.

"I don't want to argue with you AJ. I hate it."

"I hate it too Dolph, but you have to realise where I'm coming from. I'm scared about what's going to happen to us now. Serious repercussions can come from getting into an altercation with him."

"I know. It's just like he was trying so hard to get a rise out of me, you know? I wouldn't have even bothered getting into it with him but he knew he'd piss me off if he spoke about you in a bad way and then he started saying all this crap about me having a tendency to fly off the handle."

AJ starts to chew on her bottom lip. In the few years I've known her, I know that means that she's hiding something. "AJ? Do you have something you need to tell me babe?"

"John said something similar to me before. He said that him and Nikki think you have some anger issues and that's one of the reasons why she broke up with you."

"What? That's the biggest load of crap I've ever heard in my life. She said we broke up because of _anger issues_? No, we broke up because we grew apart and she started an argument with me! She's such a liar!"

AJ looks intimidated, almost childlike. Her big doe brown eyes are locked onto my own and it's like she's trying to look into my soul. "Dolph? You've just gotten into a fight with Nikki's boyfriend. You're not exactly making her and John look like they're lying."

"Wait, babe.. Please tell me that you of all people don't believe this for a second? You know I don't have anger issues. I don't even know where all of this has come from! You know Nikki's a liar."

"Oh I know she's a liar. It's just.."

"Just what?"

Her eyes are starting to become glassy but I can tell that she's trying with every fibre of her being to fight back tears. She knows she's been crying a lot lately and wants to appear to be stronger in front of people. I know this woman far too well. "Think of all the arguments and stuff you've been involved in lately. With Zack, me, Nikki and John. It doesn't exactly make me think that John and Nikki are being idiots and lying. I'm sorry to have to say that Ziggy."

"No I understand. I erm.." I can't even get my words out right. I just want to lay in bed with some ice on my eye and AJ by my side. But instead, I have to hear her say that she thinks I'm some guy who has an anger problem. I swear I can feel a punch to my gut. "I get why it looks bad, but I never lose my temper unless there's a reason AJ. Babe, you know me, you should know that I'm not like that and you should definitely know that Nikki is a manipulator. She's doing this to deliberately turn you against me I just know it!"

"Hey hey, shh shh." She leans up on her tip toes to put her hands on my face. She carefully runs her fingers over my eye ever so gently and then moves away from me. "I'm going to leave."

"What? No babe, please don't leave me."

"Look Dolph, I'm sorry okay but this has been a really rough night, but even that's nothing compared to what Kaitlyn's going through right now. She was okay when she left the room but I'm scared she's still really hurt so I'm going to spend the night with her."

I guess I can't argue with that. I'm still a little shocked that Zack and Kaitlyn have broken up. I'm sure Zack will pull his head out of his ass and get her back though. Because I can tell that AJ's still in a bad mood, I've got to say something to her so we don't leave things in a sour way before she leaves. "I love you AJ."

She stops just before leaving the door to turn around and send me a sad smile. "I love you too. Please make sure you apply some ice to that eye."

At least this time when she walks away from me, we aren't on totally messed up terms. _At least she said she loves me._ Now, time to go find Zack and fix this mess with Kaitlyn.

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**Friday update! Hope you enjoyed the chapter and also hope you enjoy smackdown. :)**


	35. Chapter 35

Dolph's pov

**Tuesday 5****th**** March – 1:20 am**

"What the hell were you thinking buddy?"

He looks like a broken mess. I've known Zack for three, maybe four years and I've never seen him in this state. I can't work out whether he's frustrated or on the verge of tears. Either way I'm sure it's not the brightest idea I've ever had to track him down and see what's the matter with him.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't act dumb Zack, you know what I'm talking about. You broke up with Kaitlyn man, what's going on? I thought you were all loved up?"

"It's.. complicated."

Zack's sat on the edge of his bed looking down at the floor. He didn't even bother getting up to open the door for me when I got here, he just said "come in".

"You've gotta give me a little more than that. You're not the only one who's had a rough night you know."

"Let me guess, you've had another pointless row with AJ and you want to tell me your sob story." So I've figured out what mood he's in. He's angry. He practically just said that sentence whilst spitting out venom. "Sorry Dolph but I think my night's been a lot worse than yours."

For the first time tonight Zack has looked at me. His eyes widen once he sees the damage on my face. "What happened to your face?"

"How about I explain that whole charade when you let me know why you've broken up with the girl you're supposed to be in love with."

Zack gets his scrawny ass off of the bed and makes his way over to me to get a closer look at my eye and fat lip. He releases a defeated sigh probably because he knows he's got to open up to me. "I don't know. I just.. I flipped. I'm sick to death of not being used properly and tonight everything got to me. And then to top it all off I had to see Cody be all cocky about doing segments with Kait. I couldn't take it anymore and unfortunately I.. Well, I took it out on her."

I feel the need to slap him and scold him for being such a douchebag to Kaitlyn, but I understand where he's coming from. I really do feel sorry for Zack because he's an exceptionally talented dude and he's been so misused in the company, it's sad. I knew there would be a day when he would finally lose the plot about it all, but I never figured he would break up with someone who he cares about so much over it.

"Hey man, I've been there. I totally understand what you're going through but what I don't understand is why you'd break up with her. Arguments are one thing but she was a wreck earlier."

"Really? Did you talk to her? What did she say?"

"I saw her briefly and could tell that she'd been crying. AJ's the one that told me she was a mess though, I didn't speak to Kait."

"Oh right. I don't know Dolph. I don't have a clue why I broke up with her but all I know is that I've screwed up. You should have seen the look on her face, we were arguing so she was obviously mad and then as soon as I said it's over between us, she completely switched. In the space of a second she broke down in front of me. It was the most painful thing ever."

"So you don't know why you did it? Well from what I hear Kait's gonna want to talk to you about all this and see if things can get back to normal. That's your silver lining in all of this, but how bad is it going to look that you don't even know why you made your girl cry?"

He walks away from me to pick up his phone. I see him switch on the device and that may mean that he's going to try and call her.

"She's going to hate me isn't she? I'm not going to be able to take this all back and she's going to hate me. Oh man, what if she ends up with Cody because of my stupidness?"

"Will you please stop? What's the deal with Cody anyway, he doesn't feel anything for Kaitlyn, he's engaged to another woman for crying out loud."

"It wouldn't be the first time he's done something to piss me off, and I wouldn't put it past him for one second to go after Kaitlyn, engaged or not." I can hear his phone buzz in his hand. I've left him several messages on his phone before I got here, so I wouldn't be surprised if Kaitlyn's left him a lot too. "51 missed calls. I turn my phone off for a few hours and I get 51 damn missed calls. 19 of them are from you.. 3 are from AJ.. 2 from Cena and 27 from Kait. Jesus Christ."

"Why would Cena be calling you?"

Zack turns round to me with a suspicious look on his face. I realise that the last sentence I said was spoken with a malicious tone to it. Zack's no dumb guy, he can probably figure out that Cena's not my most favourite person. "Let me guess, John's the reason why your face is a disaster?"

"My face isn't that bad. It's only a black eye and cut lip, it'll heal up by next week. But yes, John is why it is like this."

"Do I even want to know what happened?"

"There's not much to tell. He disrespected AJ, said some fucked up things about me and we ended up getting into a fight back at the arena. His face is kinda like mine right now."

"So you're saying he started this? What did he say to make you have a fight?"

"He said all kinds of bullshit. He said that AJ's a psycho, that kind of stuff and get this, he told AJ that him and Nikki think I've got serious anger problems. Can you believe that? It's one thing to think that in the first place, but then to go to my girlfriend and say all that crap, he deserved a few punches to his smug little face."

"Fighting with John isn't helping you prove that you don't have anger problems man. But just so you know, I don't agree with what he's said. I don't think you have anger problems; you're one of the nicest guys in the locker room. As far as I know, you've only ever lost it when needs be. But Dolph, you're a real idiot going after John, you can't risk hurting your career like that. You don't want to end up like me."

I slump down into the nearest couch. He's right, I shouldn't have had a brawl with John but I couldn't help it. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I just stood there and let him talk about AJ in such a bad manner? At least Zack doesn't agree with him about the anger thing, that makes me feel a little better. "I know it was idiotic of me to have a fight with him. I guess I'll have to deal with the consequences if there are any."

I look up to Zack to see him staring at his phone, probably not paying attention to whatever crap I'm mumbling about. He's got to feel ten times worse than whatever I'm feeling right now. He made someone he deeply loves so upset, and that's one of the worst feelings you can go through. I should know, I've been through it enough times with AJ. I've never felt so strongly about anyone until her, not even Nikki, so if we ever broke up legitimately, I know for a fact that I'd be a shell of a man.

"Do you think I should call her? Like, should I try and get back together with her now?"

"No. I think you should get back with her sure, but give her tonight to think things through. She should be with AJ right now so just allow her some space from you to spend time with her friend."

"Yeah, that's probably the best thing to do. I'll talk to her tomorrow before the tapings. Alright, I'm going to bed. You can crash on the couch if you don't have a room booked."

"Thanks man. I'll see you in the morning."

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**4:02 am**

Insomnia sucks. What I would give to be one of those people who can sleep for about 8 hours every single night and not wake up once. Just for one freaking time, I would like to sleep peacefully, is that too much to ask for? The insomnia is much worse tonight after all of the events that have taken place. I'd feel much better if AJ was by my side.

I've been scrolling through twitter for the past 20 minutes. My interactions are filled with messages about me and her. A lot of them are quite negative, saying things such as 'AJ's too good for you, you have horrible hair. AJ please leave Dolph now.', and some of them are positive like 'You and AJ are best couple ever! Never break up please.' Of course the majority are spelled with disgustingly bad grammar.

I keep clicking on pictures that people are sending me of us. The pictures manage to bring a smile to my battered face. I keep looking at one particular photo that I love though. One that isn't on twitter, and no-one but me and AJ will see. It's a photo we took not long after I told her I wanted to marry her one day. She's still sat on my lap in my locker room with her arms wrapped tightly around my neck. I'm kissing her cheek and she's smiling in that gorgeous way of hers. God, I miss her.

I decide to get off the uncomfortable couch and take a walk onto the balcony. It's a freezing night but I'm in the need of some fresh air. I click onto my contacts list and the first person's name to appear is AJ's. She doesn't sleep much similar to what I do, so maybe she'll answer if I call.

"Hello?"

"You answered on the first call. I take it you're wide awake like what I am."

"I haven't been able to sleep at all. I'm sharing a room with Kaitlyn and she's been talking non-stop about her and Zack until 3am. I swear, I was so close to slapping her for the third time in our friendship."

"I'm sharing with Zack too, but luckily for me he went to sleep quite a while ago."

"Yeah, you are lucky."

I awkwardly laugh at her comment but then there's a silence on the line. It's like we both don't have a clue to say to each other because there's still a little tension from earlier. "Is there a reason for why you called me this late Dolph?"

Is there a reason? No, not really. I just miss her lying by my side. I miss her presence. My insomnia isn't something that's going to go away any time soon, but having her warmth next to me managed to sooth me to sleep a little better. "I couldn't sleep and figured that maybe you couldn't either and.. Well I'm _really _missing you right now AJ."

"I miss you too. It is kinda weird not being in bed with you, but Dolph, we've only been apart for a few hours."

"I know it's not been long but I hate not being around you. Especially because we had a fight earlier and it's all my fault."

"Hey, I don't think it's all your fault you know. I know we didn't leave things in the best of ways tonight, but I don't really agree with everything John was saying. I think either him or Nikki is just trying to mess with my head, but after all the stuff that happened in the space of about 20 minutes, I started to second guess everything, including what John has said."

"I don't blame you for second guessing what he said babe, especially when I came back and told you that I'd been in a scrap with the guy."

"Speaking of that, did you put ice on your eye like I told you to?"

Crap. I knew there was something I was supposed to do. If I'm honest the eye hasn't been giving me much trouble so I'd forgotten about applying ice to it. "No I haven't, but thanks for being the caring girlfriend. Oh and by the way, Zack's going to try and make it up with Kait tomorrow."

"Good. She said that she was going to try and talk to him tomorrow too, so at least it looks like everything will be okay for them."

"Yeah, I'm glad. Anyway, I just wanted to hear your voice so I'll let you get back to trying to sleep. I love you AJ."

"I love you too. Make sure you do put some ice on that eye otherwise there will be trouble mister."

"Is that a promise babe?"

She starts giggling at me and just like that, all of the trouble I've had seems to flutter away with just the sound of her laughter. "Are you really flirting with me at 4am? It's a little too late at night for that kind of thing over the phone."

"AJ Lee, I have no idea what you're talking about! I was just seeing if you were being serious when you said there would be trouble. I meant nothing sexual by it."

"Sure, of course you didn't. I can practically see the smirk on your face now." She does have a point. Even over the phone she can see through my seductive ways. "Anyway, good night Dolph. Get some rest."

"Night babe."

I end the call much happier than when I first called her. She may not be with me right now, but knowing that we're okay has made this entire night a little less awful and has put me in a great mood. That is until I see the text message on my phone.

'_Tomorrow me and you are going to have a talk about what happened with you and John. Trust me when I tell you the conversation isn't going to be pretty. –Nikki.'_

Mood ruined.

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**Thank you everyone who reviews regularly, it genuinely means a lot to me :)**


	36. Chapter 36

AJ's pov

I should have known better than to share a room with Kaitlyn. Her alarm on her phone may be the most annoying thing I have ever come in to contact with in my life.

**Must. Resist. Hurting. Someone.**

I scurry out of my bed and run over to Kait's bed which is only a few metres away from mine. Even with that blaring noise coming from the speakers of her phone she's still sound asleep and snoring. How the hell does she do it? I can't even manage to get over three hours sleep but this chick could probably sleep right through world war three. Funnily enough, when I brush gently against her arm to pick up the phone to turn the alarm off, she manages to wake up. My best friend is an unusual human being.

"AJ? What time is it?"

"Whatever time you set your alarm seeing as it's just been going off."

"Oh. So it's 8 in the morning. Dang, my head hurts!"

"It's probably from all the crying you did last night, it tends to bring on a headache afterwards."

As soon as I mention the crying from last night, Kait's face drops. She must have forgotten about the events that took place last night and stupid little old me had to remind her. Damn it.

As I'm about to take a seat on her bed next to her to yet again cheer her up, I hear a knock on the door. Slightly strange considering the only people that usually knock on doors this time in a morning is room service, and I'm sure neither of us ordered that. I make my way over to the door and who should be behind it other than Kaitlyn's now ex-boyfriend Zack Ryder.

"Oh uh.. Hey AJ. Is Kaitlyn in here because I really have to speak with her?"

"Yeah, she's right through here. You've got wicked timing dude, we've only just woken up."

"Yeah, uhh… I know what time Kait's alarm usually goes off at so I kinda guessed."

I step aside to let him in and observe how nervous they are around each other since what happened between them. Before Zack can even speak though, Kaitlyn throws her arms around him. I can tell that she's resisting shedding tears at this point, but actions speak louder than words. I see Kait look up at me and I mouth the words _would you like some privacy? ,_and she nods. I quickly grab my phone and exit the room. It was then that I realised I should have known Dolph would be out in the hall waiting for Zack.

"Hey. Why are you stood out here all alone?"

"Same reason why you're out here. Giving those two some privacy to sort things out."

I walk over to him so I can get a closer look at his face. It's nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be as his eye is only a faint purple colour and his lip seems as if it's only slightly grazed. Is this man like Captain America or something? He seems to heal quicker than anybody I know.

"I take it you put ice on your eye like I told you too."

"Of course, I did it not long after I got off the phone with you. By the way, cute pj's. Don't think I've seen them before."

I look down to see what items of clothing he's referring too and realise that I'm wearing my worn out 'my little pony' pj's that I bought about 5 years ago. I've never worn them in front of Dolph because I thought they were far too childish, even though I regularly rock my Pikachu pyjamas around him. I suddenly start to feel incredibly self-conscious and would give anything to swap rooms with Zack and Kaitlyn right now.

"Oh yeah erm.. this is not my most attractive look is it? I probably look like such a state right now given my childlike choice of clothing, lack of make-up and bed hair."

"Are you kidding? You know you always look amazing, well to me you do anyway. I'm digging the my little pony gear. You make it look sexy."

Sexy. Really Dolph? I'm anything but sexy right now. I would argue my point but he looks sincere enough and I really don't want to argue with him anymore. Besides, I should be overly flattered at his compliment. It shows how much he cares about me.

"Thank you Ziggy. Did you manage to get any sleep after you got off the phone to me last night?"

"A little, but there's something I need to show you. I read this after we finished talking."

He pulls out his Iphone and then hands it over to me to read something. The first thing I spot on the screen is the name 'Nikki'. This can't be any good.

'_Tomorrow me and you are going to have a talk about what happened with you and John. Trust me when I tell you the conversation isn't going to be pretty. –Nikki'_

"Oh wow. What.. what does that mean?"

"It says what it means, she wants to talk to me about what went down with John. Knowing her she's going to be a bitter witch about the whole thing and god knows what else."

"So you're going to talk to her then?"

"I guess so. I know we said we'd avoid her at all costs but I want to know why she's said all this crap about anger problems and I want to hear what she has to say about John. We have to see her at the tapings tonight, so I'm not going to escape her."

Dolph must think I'm angry about him going to talk to Nikki, but actually I'm quite the opposite. They do need to talk about things that happened between him and John, and I want to know of whatever spiteful words she has to spew at Dolph. The one thing that seems to be running through my mind however, is how he's immediately told me about this text. Not long ago we were arguing about how he failed to mention talking to her, but now he's more open with me. It brings a smile to my face to know that.

"I agree with you. You should talk to her about things. I'm just.. I'm glad you told me about this Dolph. It means a lot."

I detect a hint of shock spread across his features at what I have to say. Maybe he doesn't realise that little things like being fully upfront with me means so much. He runs his fingers through my tangled mess of hair and bends down to kiss me on my lips. He's now smiling that beautiful smile of his that I adore, and I think that's the first time I've seen that smile in a few days.

"Trust me babe, I've learned from my mistake about not being more honest when it comes to Nikki Bella. I promise I won't keep anything from you again."

"I love you, you know that?"

He chuckles and then leans his forehead against mine. "I know, and I kinda love you too."

* * *

"When I said I wanted to talk to you Dolph, I didn't expect you to bring _her _along with you."

The mere sight of her makes me want to punch someone in the face. What gives her the right to be this way towards Dolph? Okay, maybe he did beat up her boyfriend, but even I know he deserved it with all the things he was saying about the two of us. None of this has anything to do with her anyway.

"Real cute Nikki. How about you just say your piece so I can get away from you as fast as I can."

"You are so pathetic. I'm trying to figure out why I went out with you for so long." She looks up and down at me after verbally attacking my man. This chick deserves her ass handed to her. "AJ sweetheart, good luck with this one. He's the worst boyfriend I've ever had."

I was willing to stand here by Dolph's side and just listen to whatever they have to say to each other, but how can she call my boyfriend bad when she's with Cena? "That's nice to hear Nikki, but I can see through your plastic exterior and tell that you're lying about that comment you just made. I mean, come on, why would you stick around with him for so long if he was so bad?"

"Er.. that's why I dumped him you anorexic freak."

Dolph can sense that I'm about to jump on this bitch as he stands in front of me to defend my honour. He's so good at doing that. "Look Nikki, you're crossing a line right now okay, will you just say whatever you have to say please."

"Crossing the line? Hell, you did that when you attacked my boyfriend! I wanted to let you know that John will be going to the board of directors with this and your future as a WWE superstar doesn't look very bright. Same goes for your little lapdog and bodyguard too."

"Is that it? I figured that much Nik. But let me tell you something, I'd much prefer to talk to John about all this and not you, so why don't you run along and go get your hair done with your twin or something and let me talk to your boyfriend."

"Shut up. I don't want my man anywhere near your idiotic ass because you're just going to spiral out of control as per usual and attack him yet again. I can't wait to see you get thrown out of this company, I.."

"Nikki, please babe. Calm down, yeah?"

Great, John is here. The situation clearly is getting better and better. I can practically see Dolph's body tense up, so I clutch onto his arm as a way of letting him know I'm here for him. Upon my touch, I can feel him soften, and he glances at me and offers me a smile to let me know he's fine.

"Dolph, after what happened last night I want to let you know that I'm sorry. I know I brought it on myself after saying those things man, and I would have probably done the same things if I was in your position."

John's actually apologising? Nikki looks furious. It really does bring me a sick sense of joy to see her not have things go the way she wanted. "I accept your apology John, and I apologise too. My actions were uncalled for and I'm sorry we both had to bruise each other's face. Does this uh.. still mean you're going to the board though?"

"The board? I never said anything about going to the board. I want this whole thing to be left in the past."

I see Nikki's face go from furious to downright rage filled. She nudges John in the side, and despite it not being that forceful, he winces as if he's in a great deal of pain. Maybe Dolph suckered him in the gut. "Yes we are. We talked about this last night, didn't we _baby_? It deserves to be reported that he attacked you."

"No. It's as much my fault as it is his, it's better for everyone if it gets swept under the rug. Come on Nik, don't put words into my mouth babe."

Nikki throws her arms up into the air ever so dramatically, and then storms off from John. He quickly follows her and in the distance I can hear them argue throughout the halls of the arena that we're currently at. Dolph now turns his attention to me with a puzzled look on his face.

"Well, I think that mess is sorted out now."

"Yeah, hopefully she doesn't play with his mind and convince him that he does in fact need to go to the board."

"I'm sure she won't. Hey, looks like we're not going to get fired anyway. See, we always get through the bad stuff and it turns out good."

"You're right. I'm still a little mad at you for getting yourself into that scenario in the first place. It was a really risky move Dolph."

He sneaks his arms around my waist and bends his knees a little so he is more on my eye level. He's fashioning this adorable puppy dog eyed look, and he knows how doing this makes my heart flutter. "I know babe. How about I make it up to you tonight? I have a good idea on how to make you not be mad at me anymore."

"Interesting.. Keep talking."

"It involves me, you and a luxurious bed. I won't say much more than that, because the rest is a surprise."

"You do know how to seduce a girl don't you Ziggy?"

"Of course babe, I managed to seduce the most perfect girl in the world to be my girlfriend didn't I?"

I look up and down the hallway of the arena and notice that there aren't any other people but us here. I throw my arms around Ziggy feeling fully content with everything in my little world. "Yes, you managed to seduce her in to become your girlfriend. And you've made her the happiest girl in the on the entire planet."

* * *

**So sorry for the lack of update on this story, I've been really busy. I'll try and update the next chapter soon and thanks for the feedback, keep it coming! **


	37. Chapter 37

AJ's pov

**Tuesday 5th March – 11:57pm**

"I thought you said you had planned a surprise for me?"

"No I didn't."

"Yes you did. You said that you wanted to make it up to me by surprising me with something."

"Babe, I know for a fact that I didn't. I said that my idea on how to make it up to you involved me, you and a bed and the rest is a surprise. But surely you could guess what I meant by the surprise part."

Dolph follows that up with an ever so playful wink. This man will be the death of me, I swear. Just looking at him now, currently stripping himself of his t-shirt to get changed from the long night we've had, it's hard to believe that we're together. This glorious man in front of me that has booked yet another expensive hotel suite for the two of us, is my boyfriend. How did I become so lucky?

"Okay, I must have misheard you. Kinda got my hopes up now though, I was looking forward to a surprise."

"Does this mean I have to surprise you to keep you happy? Am I not good enough for you anymore AJ? Babe, I'm deeply hurt."

I giggle at his goofiness and after walking across to the other side of the room to meet him, I throw my arms around his neck and kiss him on his slightly stubbled cheek. "You know that you're more than enough for me Ziggy." I knew that would entice a devilish grin from him.

I remove my arms from around his neck and then glide my fingers across his perfectly chiselled abs. I pride myself on having awesome abs for a woman, but damn it, Dolph is like a greek god.

"What's wrong with you? You've got a frown on your face."

What's wrong with me? For once, absolutely nothing is wrong. The mess with John and Dolph should hopefully now be all sorted out, Nikki's mad, I think Zack and Kaitlyn are back together and me and Dolph aren't fighting. There's not much else that could make me happier. But since he mentioned it, I realise I do have a frown on my face, but not for anything bad like he's thinking. It's more because I'm in awe of his body.

"You know, you should be arrested for having a body this perfect. It's not exactly fair on the rest of humanity is it?"

The uncontrollable laughter that emerges from him shocks me. All I'm doing is stating a fact that he has probably one of the most physically flawless bodies I've ever seen in my existence. "That's a pretty random thing to say AJ. What brought that up?"

"Just look at you! Showing off your toned abs and sexy muscles. You and your perfect body disgust me."

"Okay, maybe I do have a pretty great body that every other man in the world should be jealous of. But you see my 'toned abs and sexy muscles' every day AJ, why are you bringing it up now babe?"

"I just have these moments every now and again where I have to stop and appreciate how amazing you are and how lucky I am to have you. Right now I'm having one of those moments."

"I should be the one complimenting you on your body really. Millions, hell even billions of guys will agree that you have a killer figure. And I know what you mean about having those moments. I think I have one every single day that I'm with you."

"What would people say if they knew that you were this sweet to me?"

"That doesn't matter because nobody's going to find out. It's our little secret babe."

* * *

**Tuesday 12th March – 5:21 pm**

"So you and Zack are okay now then, yeah?"

"We're great! After last week, we're honestly better than we were before. We got back together in the hotel room when you left, but that night we stayed up talking for hours and hours about our relationship and what we mean to each other and it really helped. He explained about his frustration with the company and how he was deeply sorry that he took it out on me, and now we are so much happier than before. I think we needed something big like that to happen to us to make it better between us, as weird as it sounds."

"Kait, it doesn't sound weird at all. I totally understand. I'm just glad you both worked things out like I knew you would."

I haven't been able to talk to Kaitlyn properly all week due to the both of us spending much needed time with our boyfriends. Looks like a week with them did the trick as Kaitlyn's as happy as I've ever seen her.

"Thanks AJ. How have you been anyway?"

"Me? I've been great. Dolph's been a total sweetheart all week with me. So yeah, I'm happy like you are."

"That's great! Oh, before I forget, AJ you need to let me know what you want to do for your birthday. I was wondering whether you want to spend it with me, or Dolph, or maybe both?"

"Hey, I want to spend my birthday with you. Don't I always?"

Kait doesn't even say anything, but instead envelops me with her muscular arms. In that moment where I am sharing a friendly embrace with my best friend, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I swivel round to see who it is, and shock horror, it's Nikki.

"Hi. Um, AJ can I talk to you please? Privately if that's okay."

I glance to Kaitlyn and nod to her to let her know that it's okay to leave me and Nikki on our own. I'm slightly taken aback by Nikki saying she wants to talk privately to me, but I think it's been a long time coming for us to have another confrontation. Kait reluctantly walks away from the two of us and I direct my attention to one half of the Bella twins. Surprisingly enough, Nikki isn't giving off a bitchy vibe like she normally does.

"Okay Nikki, what do you want to talk to me about?"

"I uh.. I'm not really sure where to begin with this. There's a lot of things I need to uh.. apologise for."

Hold the damn phone. Is she going to.. wait for it.. _APOLOGISE?_ I am speechless. My only problem with this is whether she's being sincere or not. Everybody knows how she lies through her teeth.

"You want to apologise to me? Is this some kind of joke because it's not really funny Nikki."

"It's not a joke at all, but I suppose I can understand why you may think that, I know I haven't been the kindest of people towards you or Dolph lately."

"That's an understatement."

"I know, I know. Okay so first of all, I want to apologise for flirting with Dolph. I did flirt with him a while back, and I don't even know why because I swear I don't have feelings for him anymore. I think seeing you guys together on TV and then eventually finding out you were an item in real life.. it made me jealous. He's happier with you than he ever was with me, and that's not an easy thing for me to accept."

"You got jealous so you flirted with my boyfriend? You have your own boyfriend so that doesn't make any sense to me."

"I know it doesn't AJ. Basically, I can tell just by looking at him that he's completely in love with you. He was honestly never that way with me and I became jealous even though I'm happy with John. I can't really explain that."

"What do you mean 'never that way'?"

She starts fumbling with her hands, and at a guess that means that she's nervous. This is a totally new look for her rather than the normal Nikki I'm used to.

"You know what I mean. His face lights up whenever you're around, and he speaks so highly of you. You know how quick he is to defend you if anyone disrespects your name. He's head over heels, and that's obvious to everyone who knows about your relationship."

"I guess he is. I'm lucky."

"You are lucky, he's a great man. He doesn't have anger issues by the way, I did lie about that. I wanted to stir things up between you two and looking back now I'm not sure why. I should have just accepted that me and him would have never worked out and I should have cared more about my own relationship than yours. I am truly sorry AJ."

"All I've wanted from you is an apology for your actions, but now that you finally are apologising, how am I supposed to believe that this is sincere? You have never even showed signs of being sorry before, so what's changed?"

She pauses for a while and then takes a seat on the crate by my side. Luckily everyone else in the arena is busy doing their own thing so they can't be nosy and listen to our conversation. "John and I have spent the entire week talking about what went down last Monday and Tuesday, and he made me realise that I have been a total bitch about things. Because me and Brie have returned full time to the divas division now, we're going to see each other a lot AJ, and I don't want to be dealing with this drama. I know now that I should be the one to step up and apologise for my actions so we can move on from this."

She's sat there, still fumbling with her hands, and in her eyes I think I can see honesty. I'm trying to process the words she has just spoken. She wants to move on from all the drama? It sounds like a good idea to me, but I still find it hard to believe that she's genuinely trying to make peace with me.

"I don't know Nikki, I'd love to be cohesive with you, but a lot has happened and I'm not sure I can put that all behind me and just be friends. I don't really work that way with people."

"I understand AJ, I really do. I don't expect you to be best friends with me straight away or anything, and of course I don't even expect you to like me, but like you said, if we we're cohesive at work it's better for everyone. Please accept my apology for everything?"

She extends her hand out for me to shake as confirmation of accepting her apology. Do I shake her hand? Do I just instantly believe she's being truthful and not plotting some kind of scheme? I'm tired of fighting with her, so putting all of this behind us does seem like the favourable option. I shake her hand and see a smile appear on her face. Maybe this is the start of happier times.

"Okay Nikki, I accept your apology. I don't want any drama between us. No more ridiculous fights about guys or whatever. Moving on, yeah?"

"Yes. We're moving on. Thank you AJ."

* * *

**Tuesday 12th March – 11:49 pm**

"I'll see you later Kait, I've gotta go meet Dolph in the parking lot."

She runs over to me so she can give me a hug before I leave. "Okay AJ, but can you do me a favour and please text me about what you want to do for your birthday. What kind of best friend would I be if I didn't do anything with you for it?"

"Okay, I'll text you. Honestly, we don't have to do much, living my dream is good enough for me."

"I knew you were going to say that, but that's not good enough girl! I'll see you later."

I wave to her and then make my way out of the arena doors. It's a chilly night and unfortunately my jacket is in Dolph's rental, but luckily I can just make out where it is in the dark.

I open the passenger door to the car and am instantly met with Dolph's impeccably gorgeous smile. Nikki was right when she said he lights up whenever I'm around. It makes me feel all special and gooey inside.

"Hey babe, it's about time you got here. I want to get back to the hotel already!"

"I'm sorry, I tried to get out of there as quick as I could but I ended up talking with some of the girls. Let's get back Ziggy, I'm so tired!"

Before he sets off, he leans over to me and kisses me. Damn it, he smells so good like he always does. Having a boyfriend that smells irresistible may be one of the greatest things ever. I seem to be saying this a lot lately, but I am so lucky. My phone goes off in my hand so I click the messages button to read whoever has been sending me a text. It's Kaitlyn. Didn't she literally just see me a minute ago?

'_This is just a text to remind you to let me know what you want to do for your birthday! If you don't give me any ideas I may have to steal your shtick and slap the bejesus outta you. Love you xo –Kaitlyn'_

I laugh at her dry humour, but then glance up to Dolph. _How do I want to spend my birthday?_ Of course I want to do something with Kait, it's tradition with the two of us, but it'll be my first birthday with Dolph as my boyfriend too. I want to do something with him.

"Dolph? What should we do next Tuesday? I mean it's not like there's anything special going on that day of course."

He turns to me for a brief second with a puzzled look on his face. Maybe he didn't understand my tacky joke. "That's a random day to ask me what we're doing something on. Well, obviously we'll be at the smackdown tapings. That's all I've got planned so far."

"Oh right. So, nothing else planned at all?"

"Nope. Why would there be?"

"No reason. No reason at all."

I can't believe it. He doesn't remember when my birthday is. My boyfriend who supposedly loves me so damn much doesn't know that it's my birthday next week. I don't want to cause a fuss because I didn't want to make a big deal out of the date in the first place, but surely _him_ of all people would have remembered? I falsely smile at him and then turn my gaze to out of the window. This is going to be a long trip of trying to hide that I'm upset with this.

* * *

**I really wanted to update this yesterday, but again I've been busy. Anyway, hope you liked and reviews are better than most things in the world. :) **


	38. Chapter 38

AJ's pov

**Tuesday 19th March – 8:02am**

I refused to bring it up. I refused to be the one to remind him that it was his girlfriend's birthday today. He should have remembered on his own. I mean, it's not like I haven't told him before. Quite a few weeks back now, we were talking about birthdays, anniversaries and all things like that, so surely if he cared enough about me, he would remember the date that I was born. I should probably stop being silly by suggesting that he doesn't care about me enough, because obviously I know that he does, it's just.. _Why didn't he remember?_

We've both been awake for about an hour now. I'm still lying in bed, browsing through all the text messages and tweets sending birthday wishes. My fans remembered. Kaitlyn remembered. My god damn colleague from the spa that I used to work at who I had spoken to once had remembered. But not Dolph. No, he hasn't even hinted that he knows. I had hoped that I would wake up and he'd surprise me and everything would be amazing, but nope. Instead, he got out of bed, kissed me a few times, and then went to starbucks to get us a few drinks.

I hear the door handle move and I watch him make his way back through the door with two starbucks cups in his hand. He makes his way over to me and smiles that gleaming flawless smile. "Babe, I got us both vanilla spice latte's, I hope that's okay with you." He hands me the drink and then quickly bends down to kiss my cheek. The drink is perfectly fine by me, the fact that he hasn't remembered what date it is today is the thing that is ticking me off.

I glare at him the whole time he makes his way around to the other side of the bed. Once he's settled in next to me, without even thinking I pick up the nearest pillow and launch it at his head, almost causing him to spill the latte. "AJ, what the hell was that for?!"

"I don't know, maybe because you're the biggest jerk on the planet!"

"Going out of my way to go to starbucks for you is being a jerk now?"

"No, going to get me this makes you a great boyfriend, but forgetting my damn birthday makes you a total douchebag!"

His face softens and I can tell that he's finally twigged on as to why I'm upset. In that moment he starts to chuckle, and then he's in full hysterics. This man is really pushing his luck with me.

"Oh AJ, babe. Did you _really _think I forgot your birthday? Is that what kind of man you think I am?"

.._What? _"Are you trying to tell me you didn't forget? But you haven't mentioned it at all and I've hinted at it plenty of times."

"I know you've hinted at it, I honestly didn't think I was going to be able to keep it up, but I figured you'd be pissed at me for not remembering. You throwing a cushion at me was the perfect response that I wanted from you!"

"You mean to tell me that you _wanted_ me to be mad at you on my birthday of all days. Why didn't you just tell me you knew? You had me thinking that you didn't care enough to remember!"

At this point he'd sneaked his arm around my shoulder, so I pushed it away from my body. I'm happy that he did have the decency to remember, but I can't help but be mad at him for making _me _mad at him. Wait, does that even make sense? "AJ, don't be like that. I've got a surprise for you, you know, but you're going to have to wait until later to get it. I wanted to keep the whole 'I didn't know it was your birthday' thing up until then, but I couldn't control my laughter when you threw the pillow. I'm sorry babe."

Great, now he's throwing me the puppy dog eyes after apologising. He knows I can't resist when he does that. His mesmerising blue eyes will forever be my kryptonite. I shake my head at him but melt into his side as my way of showing him I'm not really that mad with him anymore.

"Does this mean you've let me off the hook?"

"I still think you're a jerk."

"Thanks, I love you too. Happy birthday beautiful."

* * *

**1:15pm**

Dolph's pov

I don't think I appreciate the fact that as soon as I walk through the doors of the arena, I am met with a punch to my arm by my girlfriend's best friend. There clearly is no need for that kind of behaviour.

"Woah, what is it with WWE divas and attacking me today? It's like you're all on the warpath or something."

"If you're referring to AJ and myself then yes, we are on the warpath because you forgot her birthday Dolph! How could you?"

I try to contain the laughter that so desperately wants to escape my lips, because I had Kaitlyn fooled as well as AJ. Kait can usually see through all of my tricks, but even _she _of all people thought that I didn't remember the date of birth of the most important woman in my life. I genuinely find this whole saga laughable. "Didn't AJ tell you? Of course I remembered Kait, I ain't that cruel of a guy."

"She called me up not that long ago and told me about the whole thing, but I don't believe it. My guess is that you did forget and you haven't planned anything, so you told her that you have a surprise for her later."

Now I really can't prevent the laughter, which causes Kait to punch me in the arm yet again. Kaitlyn is one of the strongest women I've ever met. I would even consider her to be stronger than someone like Beth Phoenix. So yes, I feel like I should be crying right now. "Stop it with the punches! If you don't believe me, fine, that's your problem. But, I swear to you I did remember! You can even ask Zack because I told him of the surprise I had planned for AJ weeks ago!"

I can see the wheels turning inside Kaitlyn's head. She's processing what I'm saying, and I guess it isn't sitting too well with her that Zack hasn't let her in on my little plan. "So Zack knew about this? Why wasn't I in on your surprise for AJ?"

"I know what you're thinking Kait, and stop it right now. I bet you're thinking I don't trust you or something but come on, you know that I do. It's just, you are her best friend. I didn't want there to be a risk of her finding out, so I didn't tell you just in case you let it slip to her."

"So you told Zack instead? You know that he can be one of the biggest gossips in the entire company!"

"You're right on that one, but when it's about something serious he knows how to keep his trap shut."

She scrunches up her eyes and digests what I've just told her. "Something serious? What do you mean by th.."

"Hey guys, what's going on?"

Crap. AJ. I glance at her and then back to Kait, and before even hinting to her that we need to change the subject, she catches on. "Oh hey birthday girl! We were just talking about how I've arranged a little party here at the arena with everyone. You've got quite a few gifts!"

"Really? Wow, thanks Kait. I didn't want anything much."

"I know you didn't seeing as you didn't tell me what you wanted to do on this special occasion like I asked you to. Anyway, come on you two, everyone's waiting for you!"

I watch as Kaitlyn loops her arm through AJ's and they walk off to her little party. I am going to make sure that this day is one of the greatest days in my girl's life.

* * *

**11:49 pm**

AJ's pov

"Dolph sweetheart, may I ask where on earth are you taking me?"

"That's the point of a surprise; you're not supposed to find out until we get there."

I've been patiently waiting for Dolph's big surprise all day. Well, I haven't really been that patient. I must have asked him at least twenty times to give me some clues, but shockingly enough he hasn't even given me one solitary hint. If I'm being truthful with myself, a part of me believes that maybe he didn't know it was my birthday, and has planned this 'surprise' at the last minute. I didn't even think about that until I called Kaitlyn up earlier and she had her doubts. That thought has been racking my brain ever since.

He's also placed a blindfold around my eyes, and considering that I'm wearing a lot of makeup due to being on the smackdown tapings, I'm scared I'm gonna end up looking like a damn clown once it has been removed. "Are we there yet? I know we're still in the arena so how much longer can we walk through this place?"

Dolph didn't reply and still we continued to walk around. He then grabbed onto my shoulders as a way of stopping me in a particular spot. "Okay babe, now you can take the blindfold off."

I loosen the knot of the black piece of material, and once it's removed, in front of me I can see a mirror. It's a full length mirror, and oddly enough it looks kind of familiar.

"What is.. Is this the surprise?"

"Yeah, well kind of. Don't you know where we are?"

I look back in the mirror and finally, it hits me. We're standing in the same spot where we met just over two years ago. I turn around to him and he has a nervous smile on his face, just in case I wasn't happy with where he had taken me. "You remembered where we first met?"

"How could I forget? Like I've told you before, you looked amazing on that day and I couldn't stop myself from coming over to talk to you. I guess that was the moment where my life changed forever, right?"

I giggle at him and pull him into a tender embrace. "I love that you remembered. This is perfect."

He pushes me away from his body, but threads his fingers through mine. "You don't think that this is the actual surprise, do you? No, this is just the place where I wanted to give you your gift."

He is going to give me more than this? Just sharing this moment with him at this particular spot after having a day full of gifts and working in my dream job is more than enough. Before I can reply to him, he silences me by speaking over me. "So first of all, I need to say a few things to you."

I nervously take in a deep breath in preparation for what he's going to say. Whenever he feels he _needs _to say something, it's usually profound and meaningful.

"I need to say that I love you. I love you way more than I ever expected to love anyone, and I sincerely mean that. You're quite honestly the best thing that has ever happened to me, and to know that you feel the same way about me after two and a half years filled with arguments, pain, laughter and love it just.. you will never understand what that means to me. When we met in this exact spot, I was in a bad place and.."

It's both heart-warming and heart breaking to see him this way. To have an insight into his pure vulnerability, and be able to see him be so open about his feelings makes me love him so much more. But to see him stumble on his words, a man who is naturally confident, it honestly just makes me want to tell him that no words are needed and I can understand how he feels. Regardless of that last part, I nod at him to let him know it is okay to continue.

"I had been in an on and off relationship with Nikki for quite a while, and when I met you and we became close, you took my mind off of her and make me focus on my friendship with you. I should have realised then that you were so much better for me than her, in more ways than one, but I didn't and for that, I'm sorry. But now I'm glad that we're here and.. well.. I just love you so damn much!"

I giggle at his last remark and realise that a tear has rolled down my cheek. These are not tears of sadness though, these are one hundred percent tears of happiness and love. Hell, I'm not the only one who's crying, even Dolph's eyes are water filled!

"There's not much more to say than that to express my feelings, so before we both end up bawling our eyes out, I think it's time to give you the gift."

He lets go of my hands so whilst he looks behind the mirror to seemingly pick up whatever he has for me, I wipe away my tears and quickly check in the mirror to see if my makeup is ruined. The last thing I want is to look ugly when Dolph is being the sweetest boyfriend in the world. I take a look at what is now in his hands, and my own fly up to my face in shock.

He is holding a black box. A small, velvet black box. If that is what I think it is, I have no idea how to react.

"I've been spending the past month or so trying my hardest to figure out what to get you for your 26th birthday, and I couldn't come up with anything to justify how much you mean to me. And then, I fake proposed to you in front of my parents, and I think I knew in my heart that I'd found the perfect gift for this day. I knew in that specific moment that I didn't want to _fake _propose to you. I wanted to do the real thing."

There goes my ability to hold back the waterworks. Could this moment be any more perfect? My heart is beating so fast it feels like it's going to burst straight through my chest. Much like the night in Cleveland, he takes a deep breath and slowly gets down on bended knee. I have no idea what to do with myself.

"AJ Lee. We may have only been together legitimately for a few months now, but _this_ has been two and a half years in the making. I love you more than anything, or anyone, so could you _please _make me the happiest man alive and marry me?"

Every single moment that we have spent together has led up to this night. I couldn't have dreamed of a place more fitting for this milestone in our relationship. The fights about Nikki, the confusion about our feelings, the heartache, the laughs, the romance, the kisses, the surprises and the goofy times. All of it will be engraved on my heart forever and holy hell, I am being sappy right now, but the man in front of me, who has now opened the box to show off the most gorgeous ring in the world, is asking me to marry him. This is definitely the best birthday of my life.

I look over to the clock behind Dolph's head and notice that there are a few minutes left of my birthday. A smile now graces my lips and I close my eyes to savour this memory that I'm going to end up telling our kids and grandkids about. My eyes flutter open, and Dolph is now up off the floor, probably because he's nervous I am going to say no.

"**Yes. I will marry you."**

Before he could even take in my acceptance of his proposal, I jump in his arms, now a trademark of ours, and press my lips against his so fast and hard. I can feel his confusion at what I'm doing, but it doesn't matter. This man is now my _fiancé. _He's everything I've ever wanted, but everything I never expected. And now I know for a fact that we're going to be together for the rest of our lives, because there is no way I'm letting him go.

I take a break from kissing him, and when I finally move my face away from his, he laughs at me. "Babe, that's the best reaction I could have expected from you! But, I think I need to put the ring on your finger first to make our engagement official."

"Please, be my guest Ziggy."

He lifts the box up to take the ring out of it, all the while I still have my legs wrapped around his waist. He grabs hold of my left hand which was situated around his neck, and then he slides the piece of jewellery that has three stunning diamonds on to my finger. I stare at the ring in awe of its beauty, and then lean in for another kiss off of the man I love, but this time with so much more emotion behind it.

"We're going to get married!"

"Yes we are babe. I'm just glad you said yes, I'm not sure what I would have done if you had rejected me."

"As if I would have rejected you! You've made this the best birthday ever. I love you."

"Me and you. **Forever.** Yeah?"

Another smile graces my lips as his words sound all too familiar to another moment in our relationship.

"Yes. Me and you **forever**."

* * *

**That's it readers! That was the final chapter, and I tried to make it as cute as possible! Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading and reviewing, but just to let you all know I am starting yet another AJ and Dolph story that involves the pair back from when AJ was general manager, so make sure that you check that one out. I was extremely nervous about posting this chapter, so reviews would be amazing. Thanks again! :) **


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